Tales Of A Dimensional Travelling Gutsy Ninja
by HTM
Summary: I died in the real world. Now, what does that involve? According to my knowledge, it means that all biological activities and processes of one's own body halt. Is that what happened to me when I died? Apparently not, judging by the fact that I am waking up again. Godlike!Pseudo-Self-Insert Abandoned
1. The Beginning

**Author's note is at the end!**

**Edited and read through at 12/31/2011: Fixed grammar and other issues.**

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><p>I walked towards the hot spring's entrance. <em>'Man, what a tiring day. I had to write three full length essays, along with a bitch of a project. I delivered them late, too! That's only the second time this year, though, and thank god's it's almost finished<em>,'I thought to myself.

I was a twenty one year old college student, fairly tall, dark blonde hair that was cut short as to not get into my eyes, slightly tanned skin and a fit body because of my habit of doing an exaggerating jog whenever I could, and making sure I moved around as much as I could. Nothing remarkable other than that, though, except maybe that I was a bit unhygienic, eccentric and unmotivated towards subjects not interesting me, especially when it came to some school subjects. Like Biology. Seriously, when was I going to need that for the profession I chose? I had an avid interest in languages of all kinds. English, Icelandic, Danish, and let's not forget the ever popular, ever awesome language, Japanese. Not German though. That language is the incarnation of evil, it is. Anyway, I loved the country of Japan, the culture and lots of the stuff that came out of that crazier than normal country. At least, the anime. Like Bleach, Naruto, Elfen Lied, Fullmetal Alchemist, Claymore, Soul Eater and so many more. And let's not forget the games either. One of those examples would be the Final Fantasy series. The Final Fantasy series is a prime example of Japanese gaming ingenuity.

But I had recently become completely obsessed with Naruto, almost to the point where everything I was thinking of was somehow related to the anime. I could do the obligatory twelve hand seals, Bird, Boar, Dog, Dragon, Ox, Tiger, Snake, Rat, Horse, Monkey, Hare and Ram without having to fumble around. Something I would just put my hands into one of the seals when I was lost in thought, something I was wont to do. I even came up with a small theory, or a prediction, if you will, that Naruto would somehow end up with the Rinnegan. It wasn't that far fetched of an idea. At least not in my head. Something with the Nine Tailed Beast's mind itself being sucked into the Gedo Mazo statue, but Naruto both survived the extraction and got all the chakra the Nine Tailed Beast had, and that allowed him to finally unlock the Rinnegan. No Tailed Beast to block off that precious bloodline limit anymore. Or something along those lines of thought. Alright, maybe not gaining_ all_ of the Nine Tailed Beast's chakra. That would be pure overkill.

But I only had a single friend who acknowledged the greatness that is Naruto for what it was. A really awesome anime series. But he wasn't as interested as I was in it, so I couldn't truly discuss my ideas for the series. Couldn't bounce them around to get constructive criticism, and I wasn't on the internet forums, since I saw that as a waste of broadband. Not the internet itself, though, keep that in mind. Just forums. I was normally very reserved when it came to posting on the internet, fearing that someone would go on an all caps rage for something stupid I had typed down.

I shook my head to clear it. No time to think about my blatant fanaticism on Naruto. I entered the hot spring facility. Since I was in college in Iceland, I visited one of their many hot springs. One called 'Blue Lagoon'. I chose it because of its name, 'Blue Lagoon' reminded me of another anime, 'Black Lagoon', a kick-ass one. I also chose the Blue Lagoon hot spring facility because I had been there before with on a school trip when I was in either sixth or seventh grade. Didn't really remember when it was.

After dropping off my baggage into a locker and changing into suitable attire, I entered the hot spring. '_Finally a chance to relax for a while_,' I thought. I slipped into the greenish looking water, the warmth enveloping me as I walked further into the hot springs. I let myself float a little, ignorant to the rest of the world. I was finally able to relax both my sore muscles from the very, very long jogging trip to the springs, and my winded mind. All the tasks I had to do, all the things I worried about, just floated away with the warmth that seemed to seep into my very soul.

What I didn't notice was that the wind led me to the blocked off part. The part where the heat was coming from. I had heard once that the little tunnel that the warmth and heat came from led to some lava vein or something. Might or might not be true, but I honestly didn't care one bit at that moment. If I had been more observant I wouldn't have been in the mess that I currently was in.

I thought of how the Naruto world would end up if I had had a hand in it as I drifted towards the tunnel. If I took Naruto to another village where he would face no fear of isolation, or if I trained him, or something, just to give him a better life. Maybe. But I acknowledged that knowing the pain of loneliness was necessary for Naruto to become who he would become.

As I drifted even further towards the hole from where the heat came from, I thought that I would have Tailed Beast level chakra, almost, if not, perfect chakra control, and end up in Water Country during the bloodline civil war, and aid the bloodline side, meet Mei Terumi, Choujurou and Ao, convince them to make me join them or something, only to see them freak out a little over something like my eyes. My normal eyes were a dark, boring blue, so what would be so different? Well, I would discover that I had somehow obtained the legendary and highly spoken of bloodline, the Rinnegan.

I chuckled, unaware of the stifling heat that came from the hole directly underneath me. That would be awesome, if I had the Rinnegan, Tailed Beast level chakra, almost, if not, perfect chakra control, knowledge of every technique in existence, and so much more. How awesome would that be? Of course, I thought that that wouldn't be possible, since the Naruto universe was completely fictional, thought of by an honourable man by the name of Masashi Kishimoto. That I would become what every decent fan fiction writer would be disgusted by. A Gary Stu. Granted, I myself thought that that would be very Gary Stu-ish to have the Rinnegan, Tailed Beast level chakra and potency, knowledge of every technique that existed, and such and such, but hey, it still wouldn't be as bad as the fan made literature that made up-

That thought ended when I felt the heat become unbearable, along with the inability to breathe. I opened my eyes. That was a mistake. A big, big mistake. As soon as I did, I felt an intense burning in my eyes, much greater than in the rest of my body. The pain was truly extreme. I had never felt anything like it before. It felt like my entire body was melting, the skin evaporating from the muscles, the muscles straining to keep the skin on itself, but failing drastically. My bones felt like they were crushing under the sheer pressure the water instilled on me. It felt as if my entire body was restructured, if there was such a thing. I opened my mouth, only to gulp down mouthfuls of searing hot water into my lungs. I panicked. The pain of the sudden crushing force of concussive water crashing onto my chest, the water in my lungs making sure I wouldn't be able to hold onto life any longer. I was doomed for all eternity, I just knew it. I was an atheist, so I did not believe in any religion.

My last thoughts before I lost consciousness were '_Damn, I really don't think I'd make a good Shinobi, would I?'_

* * *

><p>I hacked and coughed some lukewarm water out of my lungs. I beat my chest to empty my lungs, resulting in me puking whatever I had for breakfast, bread and butter and all. Reaching forward, I grabbed a fistful of moist grass, pushing myself to stand up. I finally took a look around, and what I saw surprised me greatly. '<em>What the hell? Isn't the afterlife supposed to be nothingness or something? Oh, wait, no one has come back from the afterlife to document that<em>,'I deadpanned to myself. How stupid of me to think that the afterlife would be some form of vast emptiness. There was no documented form of what the afterlife was. So it was useless to complain. Besides, it looked like I was in some nicer than normal place, judging by the lack of predators in the local fauna.

What I saw was a thick forest, a few of them having scratches on them. Some old, some newer, but none of the scratches could have been more than a week old. There was a lake I had apparently come from, its green murkiness jogging my memory. I came up with an unlikely theory on the fly, like I was wont to do. "Hah, that's probably the gateway to the Blue Lagoon or something. Must be either a portal back, one I'm definitely not going to try again, or simply symbolic, showing me the way I died," I whispered to myself. Whispering out loud to myself was also a habit of mine, one I had worked hard to suppress.

I heard someone talking nearby. That someone was talking Japanese, without a doubt. Suddenly, I was glad I spent watching animes to get me into the Japanese language, for else there would be a serious language barrier.

"No, I swear, sis, I saw someone unconscious here! I told you already-" two people showed up, each on a branch thick enough to carry them both. One of them, the one talking, was a boy, couldn't be older than fifteen, wearing bright green clothes, with bright green hair and bright green tear marks that went from his eyes all the way down to his jaw. His companion, a dark skinned woman, a very attractive dark skinned woman I noted, with the same green-coloured tear stains as the boy, with very long red hair, reaching all the way to her lower thighs. "Yeah, yeah! See! He's even awake and everything! And he's... almost naked!" the boy screamed, frightened to find a twenty one year old man in nothing but swimming shorts.

"Well, seems you were right. Ho there, stranger. Who are you? What's your name?" the attractive woman asked, curious about the half-naked man sitting by the green-coloured lake.

I usually think of myself as a very composed individual, never making a fuss about impossibilities, or freaking out over the smallest things, no matter how big the small things are, or of how many of the small things there are. I always take a composed, logical approach to most problems in front of me, taking the most logical sounding answer. The answer seeming most true, at least.

Still, it didn't explain how they _got up there_! I mean, they must have had to have jumped twenty feet into the air to do reach that high! And wouldn't have been more practical to, oh, I don't know, _run on the ground, _instead of _jumping_ up to the trees? I dismissed my bewildered thoughts, thinking that that was just how those people were. Maybe they liked doing that. Why else would they do that? I didn't know, and frankly speaking, I didn't care.

"My name is-" I hesitated.

Now, normally I wouldn't hesitate to tell my name, not even to strangers. So why did I hesitate now? Well...

I didn't remember my name.

I know, I know. It was absurd! I remember everything else about my life! My childhood, my school-life, my not so rebellious teenager years, my first love, my first heart-break, my jobs, my college, everything! Yet, I didn't remember my name. How could something so important be so elusive?

So, I took the next best thing. Since they were speaking Japanese to each other, hopping in trees, like it was commonplace, wearing clothes similar to those from my favorite anime, Naruto-

Wait a second.

Jumping in trees, speaking Japanese, the thick forest, the unnatural feeling in my eyes and body that I just now discovered, the clothes...

Had I somehow found myself in the Naruto universe?

Oh to hell with it. If the improbability of me being in the Naruto world really was true, then why not enjoy it while it lasted?

So, I came with the next best thing. I invented my own name.

"Takuma. Shinji Takuma," I said, trying to sound sure of myself, even if the only thing I had on were a pair of swimming short. Damn, it was embarrassing, wearing only a pair of swimming shorts.

Unfortunately for me, the woman looked quite a bit sceptical. That, or was a bit embarrassed to see a handsome man like myself almost naked. Alright, so my confidence was still intact, that was good to know. "Alright then, Takuma-san-" they jumped down from the tree, "Mind explaining to is how you ended up here, where you come from and all that?"

OK, now it's time for my super awesome lying skills to come into play. Oh, good times, good times. "Sure, but would you happen to have any clothes on you? I happen to be freezing over here," I said ironically. Alright, so maybe not lying. I was merely diverting their attention.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Takuma-san. If we see you're lying, we'll have to kill you. Now, tell us-" and in a flash of green water they both disappeared, reappearing behind me, each with kunai in hand. The kunai were both pointed at locations that would without a doubt cripple me for life. "Or else," the attractive, dark skinned woman threatened.

So normally I wouldn't be scared of threats, or death treats, at all, knowing that they wouldn't ever dare to do it. I've had more loaded guns pointed at me than I could care to count, and only once has the gunner ever been less that chickenshit and pulled the trigger. He had missed by over three feet. Over _three fucking feet_. But I was in the Naruto universe, and they had sharp knives pointed at me, ready to stab me at a moments notice. And, as just displayed, they could catch up to me with no problem whatsoever. So I decide to tell them the truth. Well, partial truth, anyway. "Sure thing, see, I fell into this hole thing, and all of a sudden I vanish and end up in that cute little pond there," I said, pointing at the green lake in front of me.

"Kazue-kun?" she asks. Since it couldn't have been my name, Shinji Takuma, I assumed it was the flamboyantly dressed boy instead.

"Shinji-chan's not lying! I swear!" he exclaimed, pouting. However, he seemed to have sent a serious, and questioning, glance at the attractive woman. But before I could confirm it was there it was gone, replaced by that repulsively cute pout of his. Though it seemed ever so slightly more serious.

"Alright then, Kazue-kun. Now, Takuma-san, who do you work for? Again, you lie, you die!" Oh, I'm sure Killer B would love hearing that one. Though she did sound far too serious for comfort. Alright, time to alleviate some of the beautiful woman's worries.

"I work for myself, at least for now." It was true. I had recently gotten myself fired because I accidentally forgot to add some stuff to some random, but very important nonetheless, document. Stupid document wasn't even good for the company I worked for to begin with, why fire me for it? But hey, it did some good. I was free like a bird, and I didn't have to lie to the Japanese speaking people I had just met.

"Shinji-chan's not lying, Akahime-chan! I swear on my ninja-way!" he blurted out loudly and buoyantly, putting away his kunai quickly, now all traces of seriousness left in his face completely gone. Damn, I wish I was that good to mask my suspicions on a person. Also, 'I swear on my ninja-way,'? Really? Now, where have I heard _that_ before? Don't answer that, I already know the answer to that question.

Akahime reluctantly put away her kunai. Then she looked at me strangely, right in the eyes. Like she noticed something odd. "Hey, what dojutus do you have? I don't know what kind of dojutsu that is, though." She shook her head and shrugged. "Then again, it's not like I'm a dojutsu know-it-all like Kazue-kun here."

Hold on a fucking a minute! I have a dojutsu? I immediately school my face to hide my thoughts, and it seems to have worked, since the both of them are too captivated by my eyes.

Wait just a small minute. My eyes saw clearly. I have had to wear really strong glasses before, since my nearsightedness got in the way of school and work. They saw clearly! _I_ saw clearly! Damn, why do I have to have such trouble relaxing my face? "Oh, I've never noticed before. How do they look like?" I ask. Please let them be purple, with rings spreading outwards! Please, let them be the Rinnegan! I seriously disliked the Sharingan and the Mangekyo Sharingan. I always thought of those as a little bit weird. In a bad sense. I mean really, Kamui? Never mind the Amaterasu and the Susanoo. Uh, I almost couldn't _wait_ to prove those Uchiha wrong, especially the little whiny bitch, Sasuke Uchiha. That Susanoo was _not_ the ultimate defence and the ultimate offence. That is, if I didn't die first. I sure as hell hoped I wouldn't die.

"They have a purple colour-" and here it comes! "With some rings going out of it-" And I have the Rinnegan! Fan-fucking-tastic! Before she can continue questioning how I haven't noticed before, I immediately interrupted. No questions about my past, please. Let me be the mysterious stranger that was willing to help as many people as he possibly could

"The Rinnegan," I said, determined to not let her ask how come I didn't know I had them before.

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><p>And before I knew it, I was in a Japanese styled house, with tatami mats as the floor, with a white silky kimono on. Damn are they comfortable. The moment I mentioned the Rinnegan, the little squirt Kazue-kun, as I would come to call him, went ballistic. As in, he yelled that I had a bloodline, and that I should aid them in the Water Country's civil war. Huh, I was in the time period I wanted to be in. How quaint. Kazue-kun also said that I had Tailed Beast level chakra. Equal to that of the Three Tailed Beast inside Yagura, their mind controlled Mizukage. And that simply stunned me. I had chakra equal to a Tailed Beast? Not many could say that. Maybe Kisame Hoshigaki when combined with his Samehada, but hey, who cared about the fish guy? He lost to Guy. Sure, Guy had activated the Eight Death Gates up to I think it was seventh, but still. Pathetic, I say.<p>

Still, I didn't know any techniques, besides maybe Shinra Tensei, Bansho Ten'in and Chibaku Tensei, along with the shadow clone technique and the theory for mastering the Rasengan. Though the shadow clones technique would be enough to gain knowledge and experience for knowing as many techniques as quickly as possible, as well as mastering them. And of course, let us not forget the neglected arts of seals. I mean, you could seal a dojutsu away, even permanently. Now whomsoever disagrees that seals are useless is-

My thoughts died ahead when the door opened. Lo and behold, Mei Terumi walked in. I thought it strange, this was just like a dream, really. Maybe it was. I mean, Mei Terumi, the beautiful Mizukage, or at least she would be, a fictional character, was standing right in front of me, in the flesh, dressed in that blue dress of hers, even down to her own shoes. I think it was her shoes too. You never know with women. Mei walked towards me and sat across me at the low table. I looked directly in her eyes, not in the least distracted by her plentiful cleavage. And no, it didn't take much effort on my part to do so. It never had been difficult for me to focus on an object, or for that matter, a pair of eyes. Mei seemed to notice this, and smirked. She probably thought it cute that I tried to not stare at her large breasts.

"Shinji-kun." Hohoh, adding a familiar suffix, are you now, Terumi? "It has come to my attention that you have a rare bloodline. And from what I see, it is true. So Kazue-kun and Akahime-chan weren't lying when they said you had the Rinnegan," she said in her usual, sultry tone. She put a dainty hand over her chest before continuing. "Are you familiar with the ways of the ninja? The arts of ninjutsu, genjutsu and taijutsu?" she asked.

Must they always forget seals?

"And let us not forget the neglected arts of seals, Mei Terumi-dono," I said politely, bowing slightly. Formality can show a great many things. It could also get me to seem out of reach for her pleasant advances. Probably making me that more of an intriguing person to her. "But yes, I am familiar with them, but I have not been trained in the way of the shinobi. I would like to, though, if you were willing to have someone train me. But I also happen to know the abilities of my eyes, the Rinnegan. At least the theory behind each ability," I said, deepening my bow to show humility. I mean, the woman in front of me could literally melt me in two ways. Either through lava or that steam thing. Thus I shouldn't piss her off. Ever. Or else.

Mei put a dainty hand on her chest. "I am humbled that you think so highly of me. Though it is unnecessary for such a handsome young man such as yourself to bow to me. However, I'd like to know, what are these techniques of your Rinnegan? I understand that those were the eyes of the Sage Of The Six Paths, yes?" She ended her sentence with a sceptically raised eyebrow. Oh, damn, not good. It wouldn't do to have her be sceptical of me. Best reassure her that what I had was the real deal. At least I hoped it was.

Ever since I entered the Naruto world I had felt much lighter than before. I believe it was because of the 'laws of physics', so to speak, applied to me as well then, which then granted me chakra. I didn't completely understand where that theory came from, but I lived with following the flow. Sort of, at least. So, since I felt lighter, I thought it was dizziness speaking at first, but then I came to think that it was because chakra is flowing through my body.

With that in mind, I focused on that light feeling in my body. Concentration. Concentration was required for that precious chakra to be reached. There we go. I had a hold on it. "Yes, they are. Bansho Ten'in," I said, as I held out a palm towards a bookshelf to my right. I imagined my chakra acting like a sticky whip, flinging out towards a single book only on that bookshelf, attaching to that single book, and pulling it back, landing perfectly in my hand. And I felt a slight thud on my palm as I finished imagining it. Looking at my palm I found a dark coloured book, with a headline, 'The Legend Of The Sage Of The Six Paths'. Huh. There had to be a higher power if I had that book in my hand. But I didn't believe in higher powers, so there had to be a logical reason as to why the book was in my hand. It was a simple answer to that; coincidence.

Looking back at Mei, I saw her with an awestruck expression on her face. My, who would've thought she'd be that sexy with her mouth open like that, open just enough to stick my-

No! Dirty thoughts, dirty thoughts, begone!

I smirked at her stunned expression. "Yes, and that's not even half of it." My voice seemed to have snapped her out of her shocked stupor. She shook her head, making her hair shake a little. Damn, I thought that she intentionally was so alluring! Wait, yes, yes she is. Forgot about her husbandry complex. I think it had something to do with her being 'old' and 'unattractive', but I knew for sure that it was something with her not being married. Since she had that blue dress of hers, I'd guess the bloodline civil war was almost over. I guessed, at least. That, or she just, understandably loved that dress.

"There's more?" she asked, stunned by my performance and show of the Rinnegan's aptitudes. Of course she'd ask. Who wouldn't want to know about the abilities of the Rinnegan? What it was capable of?

"Yes," I said. "It has the ability to manipulate gravity, as you just saw." I gestured to the book that now lay on the table."With something called the Shinra Tensei. It repels everything. Though it does have a sort of limit. It can only be performed every five or so seconds, I believe. It was five seconds last time I checked. There is also Chibaku Tensei, a technique that I will not tell, but show, only." This seemed to make Mei tense, probably suspecting me for being some sort of traitor or someone who had ill intent towards the bloodline side of the bloodline civil war. Not that I blamed her, of course. I mean, I landed in Water Country all of a sudden, so there should be asked lots of questions. Luckily, I hadn't faced that stage just yet. I continued, "It can also see chakra, all types of it. It grants the wearer super strength and speed. It allows the wearer to summon up specific animals and people that have special seals on them. There is an ability to tear the soul of a victim away by laying a hand on them to extract their soul. That in turn makes all information the extracted soul has gotten is then transferred to the wearer. And then, finally, it can resurrect the recently deceased." That seemed to amaze her even more than my show of Bansho Ten'in, which would be quite the feat.

"Impossible! That is truly impossible." That seemed to anger her for some reason or other. Oh well, if she didn't believe me, then let her not believe me. Her loss.

"It doesn't matter if you don't believe me or not. I mean," I shrug before continuing, "Manipulating gravity is what the Rinnegan can do. That should be enough, right?" I open the forgotten book about the Sage spoken greatly of in legends. "Despite the hardships the Sage went through, he still succeeded in gaining true peace. It was a temporary peace, but peace, nonetheless." I close the book with a snap and closed my Rinnegan. Mind you, I didn't read anything from the book, I just always wanted to say that. "It is said that he gave his eldest son his eyes and potent spiritual energy, while the youngest got the body of the legendary Sage Of The Six Paths, as well as the ever so potent physical energy. The eldest believed that power was the key to true eternal peace. The youngest believed love to be the key to true eternal peace. Because of the younger brother's ideals the Sage Of The Six Paths, in his dying days, chose him as his successor. Thus began the cycle of hatred and war between the two brothers' families and clans." I looked at a stunned Mei. Funny, it seems I was a very surprising person in the Naruto world. "Did you know that?" I asked.

Mei shook her head no.

I smirked. "You weren't supposed to know." I looked at the cover of the book. I just noticed, despite the odd choice of colour the book had, it also had a pair of purple Rinnegan. I looked straight at them. "The elder brother's family, or clan if you so prefer, had become what we now call the Uchiha." That seemed to make Mei react. She snapped her neck, looking at me with surprised eyes. So, she knew about the Uchiha, it seemed. Alright, they were a famous clan, even after the Uchiha massacre. Especially after the Uchiha massacre. "The younger brother's ancestors are what we call the Senju." That seemed to nearly frighten Mei. She truly seemed at a loss for words.

"I- I didn't know all that." Mei finally got some words out, it seemed. About time, too. She had been doing a very good imitation of a fish out of the water.

"That's alright. It isn't exactly common knowledge to begin with, anyway." I put the book back onto the table between me and Mei. "So, looking past that mouthful that just came out of my mouth all of a sudden, how about we discuss my training? I heard from one of your men, Kazue-kun, I believe his name was, that I have Tailed Beast-level chakra. So my chakra control needs some work." That snapped Mei out of her trance, as she began to take a serious look on her pretty face.

"Very well. I will train you." I smiled at her with a genuine smile. She, however smirked at me, and winked, "Personally."

I gulped in fear. I'd apparently find out later why I was so scared. Women from Naruto could be very, very scary when they want to. Like Tsunade scary. And Tsunade was scary.

* * *

><p>And train I did.<p>

Since I had Tailed Beast-level chakra I could produce shadow clones en masse. Mei Terumi was joined by another person, Ao, I noted. We trained myself in a very large clearing, near where Akahime-chan and Kazue-kun found me. They joined me too, and were given responsibility of me in the days I trained.

My taijutsu plain sucked. It sucked so much that they simply gave up on it. I mean, I could be beaten by a lousy Genin, if said Genin was even low level. My ninjutsu, genjutsu, and whatever book about seals I managed to get my hands on, now that was an entirely other story. Apparently I could be considered a prodigy at ninjutsu, genjutsu and seals work. But of course that was just an exaggeration, really. All I did was imagine the hand seals, then my chakra flow to the correct spot, then the result. That was it. But _no,_ they just _had_ to label me as a prodigy. I mean, come on! Oh well, I guess it's just one of those things one had to live with, correct?

I had learned as many techniques as I could. But my favourite element was water. I liked it so much, because, one, it was ideal for close quarters combat, whatever one might say about it, and the blunt force trauma one can get from being hit by a simple water bullet is enormous! And when highly compressed it can cut through almost anything. Just my style. When still, calming and quieting, almost entrancingly so. But when angered, moved, disturbed, a wave of destruction just begging for enemies to come, just so it can kill some more.

Yep, definitely my style.

While I was training, I had twenty or so shadow clones try mastering the Rasengan in secret. And I got it down in a month. To be honest, the only difficult part was making the balloon pop at first. Probably because I had a hard time imagining the chakra flow in several different ways at once. But eventually, I got it down. The second step was easy as eating a piece of bread and butter. And I liked bread and butter. The third step was without a doubt the most difficult step. To compress the flow of chakra that went in several directions at once and compress it into a sphere so that it wouldn't break. Now that was difficult. But after a few weeks I got it down.

I even got the elemental Rasengan, too. Though that had taken three and a half month. The wind Rasengan was just like in the manga, looked even the same. It did the same things as Naruto's did, too. The lightning Rasengan was just an enhanced Raikiri, really. It, however, could pierce things made to repel lightning chakra. _S__pecifically._ Nothing to say no to. The earth Rasengan was a funny looking one. It was a muddy brown Rasengan, but it should definitely not be underestimated. It was not for targeting a single person, let me just tell you _that_. The resulting kinetic explosion was enough to level a skyscraper's foundation. The fire Rasengan, now that was a strange one. It burned not red, yellow, blue, orange, or even black or white. No, it burned green. I still hadn't figured it out its ability and power until I used it on a tree. It rotted so quickly I didn't know it was possible. Apparently it was a poisonous Rasengan. Huh. At least poisonous to plant life.

Now the water Rasengan was nothing to frown at, either. It was basically a Rasengan with a layer of water around it. Now that might not sound too impressive, but water doesn't look impressive to begin with, does it now? When used, the blunt trauma cause is off the freaking charts. I used it on a tree, and it flew all the way to the ocean. And the ocean was about three kilometers away. Sure, the earth Rasengan was better at sending multiple opponents away, but it also made sure that the ground underneath me almost disintegrated. Good thing I used shadow clones to train the Rasengan.

I had trained for months when I finally was allowed to enter live battle. Let's just say it wasn't pretty. For the bloodline haters, at least. Apparently having a Rinnegan user really upped morale, and thus, in turn, increased battle efficiency. I even took my first kill lightly. After a while, I began to enjoy killing, but when the feeling came up I immediately squashed it, saying that that would make me into a power hungry maniac. I don't want to be a power hungry maniac! Maybe to scare the shit out of someone, what with all my power, but that's it. I don't really want to become one. They were evil. Right?

During my training, I secretly trained my taijutsu as well. Despite being a hopeless case I trained it. I knew that it was helpless. Useless to try. But I had twenty pound weight seals on my limbs, around my neck and on my torso and abdomen. I even put restriction seals on me, restricting me to only use the most necessary of movements to move, to make sure I would meet resistance at even the slightest of movements. When I unsealed my weights and restrictions, I was still horrible at taijutsu. Why was I horrible at taijutsu? I was frightened to get a fist, foot or whatever, to come at my face. Pathetic. But I just couldn't stop not reacting like a coward whenever someone got close to my face in hand to hand combat. Therefore I preferred long-range combat. I was much more confident there, too.

And the best of it all? I developed a relationship with Akahime-chan. Apparently, she was a real hothead. She really liked hitting things. No, I was not a masochist. I just want someone to not get tired trying to, let's say, wake up a lazy person by kicking them or something. She had no complaints there, that's for sure.

And Kazue-kun? Yes, let's not forget the lovable fellow. He loved green-coloured things. That was pretty evident, if you just looked at his brightly coloured clothes. One might say they're impractical, but he was the best spy for the bloodline side of the civil war. So, therefore, he wore bright clothes to make himself even more noticeable than his already bubbly personality was. And not once had I seen him serious, so that must have meant that he was not that serious of a person. As if that wasn't obvious to begin with.

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><p>Finally, after a year of training and and half a year battling in life and death situations, and witnessing the death of many a powerful and potent shinobi, I finally faced Yagura, the Mizukage.<p>

I stood next to the future Mizukage, Mei Terumi. We were both standing in front of him, in front of the Mizukage tower. Funny, it looked very similar to what I imagined the Hokage's tower looked like.

Anyway, I stood with Mei Terumi, to her left. And to her right, we had none other than Ao. I hadn't gotten to know him, because I didn't like the way he seemed to love 'ye olden days'. I noticed that he still had that distinct eye-patch of his. He was obviously hiding his stolen Byakugan.

Behind us was a battle worthy for the hall of fame. At least in my opinion. You could see both boil releases and various other bloodlines being used against the non-bloodline users. The battle was very even, so I suspect that whoever won the stand-off between Yagura versus Mei Terumi and Ao and I would win. And I didn't want to lose to anyone. Ever. Unless strictly necessary, of course.

"Now, Shinji-kun, Ao-san, now is the time for justice. Yagura's tyranny ends today," Mei Terumi said with an air of finality and an expression that would make weaker men tremble. Granted, I did, slightly, because despite me being here for, let's see, a year and a half, I still wasn't completely used to killer intent. But I tried to leak as little of it as possible, so I think Yagura, the Mizukage, would perceive me to be the lesser threat. That should make me get the jump on him. If not, then I'll just Shinra Tensei his ass out of the atmosphere. Or make him the middle of a new moon, if necessary. Oh, I remember trying it. Damn, did it suck the chakra out of me. Granted, I did make a moon twice the size of what Nagato had made when he was up against Naruto, but Nagato had been exhausted at that moment. What kind of chakra monster was Nagato, then?

"Mei Terumi. You've been a pain to my plans. As usual," the little squirt murmured. I mean, come on. He's technically a dwarf, what with him being as old as me, but half as tall. But he was a Jinchuuriki, so he shouldn't be underestimated at any cost. That I'd give him.

OK, time to say something epic, like, 'Hey, Yagura, do you know if your dominatrix is close by? You know, that Madara fellow?' No, that's not epic at all. Oh well. Best not say a thing, then. Just to be safe, you know?

"Enough of your tyranny, Yagura. Don't worry, I haven't come here to listen to your petty reasons for doing what you've done. Time to end this!"

With that, she charged forward, followed close0ly by Ao and me, with Ao giving a battle cry as he swung one big-ass sword he had strapped on his shoulders. Huh, funny, how come I hadn't noticed that before?

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>OK, so, this is my first fan fiction. I guess that's pretty obvious if you look at the pacing, right? I mean, all of a sudden, I'm facing Yagura. But bear with me here. What I intend to do is to get to the situation. I'm not good at writing the buildup, I tell you. But never the less, I try.

Anyway, here is ten pages worth of fan fictional story. If you're worrying about where I landed, and haven't guessed yet, then I landed about the middle of the bloodline civil war. Thankfully I landed close to the bloodline's base of operations. So, anyway, please view, review and stuff.

**EDIT:** If you just want to skip the Naruto part and go to the part where it starts with Bleach, I suggest going to chapter 36. That's where it properly starts. Though I have to say that you'll miss a lot of the story, but hey, it's your choice. :D

**EDIT2:** Fixed some seriously glaring holes in tenses. I mean, what the hell is wrong with me? I used present tense! Never, ever, use present tense in fiction, unless it's in speech! I say!


	2. Entry to Konoha

**Author's note at the end!**

**Edited; corrected grammar and other things at 15/01/2012.**

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><p>Now, where was I? Ah, yes, I was charging at Yagura, about to fight him alongside the stalwart Ao and the beautiful Mei Terumi.<p>

And the fight? Well, I opened the fight up with firing a powerful water technique at Yagura. He jumped away from the technique, but it caused the Mizukage tower to shake some of its roof tiles off from the sheer force of the water technique's impact. It created a vital opening for the auburn-haired Mei to get under the Fourth Mizukage's guard. Mei managed to kick Yagura in the stomach, making him slam into a building close by. I followed up with a quick Grand Fireball technique. Yagura somehow managed to dodge the big ball of fire despite the intense pain from the kick that he was probably in.

Ao followed up quickly, and, being a swordsman, managed to hold him back for a while. I ran to Mei, whispered something to her. "I'm going to use something on Yagura, stay back." Both Ao and Yagura seemed to have noticed my whispering to Mei. It also seemed to have angered Yagura, because he began to immediately charge at the two of us. I smirked, and used some chakra to power a jump backwards. Yagura was having none of that, and used some chakra as well to run even faster. My smirk just got wider.

Because there was the fact that I had perfected the Rasengan. Not to the point of where I had to use a clone to do to the rotation, no. To the point where I can create the Rasengan in one hand. So, therefore, I put a hand behind my back and created a water Rasengan. I took my other hand, and pointed its palm towards Yagura's quickly approaching form. "Bansho Ten'in," I whispered.

Predictably, Yagura flew towards me, as was the technique's intent. Yagura was surprised that he suddenly flew towards me. I prepared to hammer him with the water Rasengan. Unfortunately Yagura managed to evade slightly. I managed to hit his arm. And by hitting his arm I blew it sky high, with no passenger. As in, Yagura now had no left arm.

But wait, if that's Yagura, then what's with the puddle-

Oh shit!

I felt a sudden fist slam into the side of my face. Luckily, I had used chakra to reinforce my body structure at the start of the fight. And I wouldn't run out of chakra any time soon. Still, didn't mean it didn't fucking hurt!

I flew into a nearby building and through the first wall. I groaned, laying still to make sure none of my bones were broken. Luckily, none of them were, though I think I'd have some major bruises at the end of the fight. Fucking great. I hated bruises.

Yagura probably thought I was down for the count, or dead, all the same to him, since he didn't come finish me off. I heard the battle continue. I even felt Yagura's chakra become tainted. Probably an indication of him activating the Jinchuuriki cloak. Damn, and I thought I had got him good there. Well, while the battle continues there, I devised a plan.

Okay, let us see what I could do in that situation. First, I'd do the transformation technique to transform into a bird, preferably a seagull, as they were native in the local area. Then, I would disable the transformation so I could use my arms to send a lightning jutsu at him. Why lightning? Because lightning, out of all the five elements, had the best penetrative force. Punch. Power. Whatever. Oh, that was a nasty shock wave there. Maybe the Tailed Beast ball from Yagura? Or a Water Dragon Bullet jutsu from Ao or Mei? Never mind, it didn't really matter all that much.

And if the lighting jutsu wouldn't work, then I would go for the lightning Rasengan. Its penetrative force, punch, power, whatever, _should_ be able to penetrate the tough Jinchuuriki cloak. Thank goodness the Three Tails only has three tails worth of chakra. If it were four who knows how much destruction it could have caused then? Orochimaru's sword of Kusanagi was said to be able to cut anything, and it only pushed Naruto when he was at version two... wait, that was version two, meaning that he had succumbed to his hatred. Never mind, it was unnecessary to think about.

So, the plan was down, time for a plan B, and maybe a plan C. Ouch, that was a nasty cracking sound. Pretty sure it sounded like bones snapping. Happened to me once while I was sparring against Akahime-chan. Hurt like hell.

Anyway, if plan A would not work, then I'd try the earthen Rasengan. Just to make sure Yagura would not be getting away. And if that wouldn't work, then I would simply create a distraction via shadow clones in order to use small Chibaku Tensei on him, thus making sure he won't escape. It took eight tails worth of chakra to get out of a large one made by Nagato, so three tails worth shouldn't be enough to break it. Or so I thought, at least. I _had_ created well over two thousand shadow clones that day, all of which had been practicing extremely taxing techniques.

Alright, the plans were firmly in my head, I believed it was time to finally get up. I sat up, and what I saw surprised me a little bit. Which it shouldn't, but alas, stuff happened all the time/

I saw Yagura holding Ao with a tight grip on his neck, but connecting his eyes with a slightly exhausted Mei. Good, all their attention was focused on each other, it was time to do the physically changing transformation technique. I did the necessary hand seals for the transformation technique, Dog, Boar, Ram, transforming into a white seagull. I flew upwards, trying to not make any kind of sound, just in case. As I flew in circles, I saw that Mei had probably noticed my transformation, because she began to distract Yagura by talking to him, asking him why he had done such evil, cruel things to people with bloodlines, despite what she had said before. This seemed to have amused Yagura, since he began to laugh with much mirth.

Screw it, it was time to initiate plan A. I was directly above Yagura, waiting for the right moment to dissipate my transformation technique. There! He had thrown Ao away, far enough for me to use the lightning technique! Okay, so I did the hand seals, Dog, Boar, Horse, 'Lightning Release, White Lightning!' and stretched both my hands out towards Yagura below me.

As was the technique's namesake, white lightning streamed from my hands and down towards Yagura. It, miraculously, hit him. And penetrated his Jinchuuriki cloak. And, the best of all, he didn't disappear or dissipate into water or turn into a log. Seems like I put enough chakra into that jutsu. Not that it had anything to do with it, but still.

I landed beside Mei, and smirked towards her. "Oh, wipe that smile off your face. That cannot possibly be enough to finish him off," she glared at the burning and crispy corpse of Yagura's. I decided to voice my thoughts.

"I don't really care, to be honest." I walked towards Yagura's quite singed body. Mei and Ao had both recovered. I looked at the downed Yagura. Slowly, I touched him with the tip of my foot. "Yeah, he's the real one, alright." Very well then, now it was time to do something about his Tailed Beast. Perhaps absorb it? To double my chakra, maybe? No, I didn't want the Akatsuki to hunt me down. Releasing the Three-Tails it was, then.

I took a scroll out of one of my pockets inside my white kimono and began to seal Yagura's body in it. I was aware that you could only seal people if they were already dead, unless you would like a brain dead person. But I couldn't care less about Yagura. Now there was one less puppet in Madara's control. He was probably furious, and already planning on dealing with me somehow. Not that I wasn't ready for him, or anything. I noted to myself to research space-time ninjutsu. Probably I could learn to make myself intangible somehow. And making a bastardized version of the Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God technique. It'd be pretty damn helpful. And probably make me a famous person.

* * *

><p>The boat was rocking. Left, right. Left, right. Left, right, continuously. Finally, two sea miles away from the coast, I asked the sailor I had hired to stop the boat. I stood of from the spot I had been sitting on. I looked down into the waters. Damn, it must have been incredibly deep waters we were sailing over. However, the deeper the better. I unsealed Yagura's body. Somehow, and I didn't know how, probably because he was a Jinchuuriki and all, he was still alive, but his legs couldn't be used anymore. At least that was what I thought. They had cuts all over them, some bleeding furiously, others clotted.<p>

"Wha-what's happening? Where am I?" Yagura sent question after question, but neither I nor the sailors of the ship would answer the soft-spoken tyrant. They're the worst kind of tyrants, in my opinion. I quickly put some seals I had prepared previous to going on the boat, chakra disrupting seals, on him, to make sure he would not be able to use chakra. At all. None. Nothing. His chakra control would be shot to hell, and nothing he could do, except for tearing off the seals, which would give him unequaled pain, would make it go up to snuff again.

After successfully putting the seals on him I knelt close to him. When I was close enough, I began to whisper into his ear, making sure to sound like a maniac. Just to scare him a little bit before he would die, of course. To add salt to the wound, I grabbed a fistful of his hair and got up close to him, staring him right into his pink eyes. "Well, has the paranoid Mizukage finally become a helpless squirt? You are a mere shadow of what you once were, and you won't have your petty little Tailed Beast to take care of you, now. How..." I tap my chin with my unoccupied hand. "Sad," I said, and grinned maliciously.

As I said that I pulled Yagura up by his hair. Usually I wouldn't have been this brutal. But hey, it wouldn't hurt to indulge into my sadistic fantasies every now and then, right? I also wouldn't be able to carry him up by his hair by one hand to begin with. If I didn't have chakra.

I pulled him put to eye-level, and smiled. He began to even tear up! Ha! It was so fun to mentally torture someone like this! So fun to be so powerful! Finally! After being so weak in my former world, I was finally so strong! One of the strongest, I-

Shit! I was getting insane. I quickly wiped the smile off my face and send a sorrowful glance at the water. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you from Madara's clutches, Yagura." Yagura greatly widened his eyes. I stabbed him in the neck with a kunai I had stored in my kimono's sleeve and threw him overboard. I heard the crew cheer. They began to sail back to the docks we had left from. I simply watched Yagura's body slowly sink with a melancholic mood. Meh, oh well. Sacrifices are supposed to happen. The people that die are supposed to die. And all that jazz. I simply shrugged the sad mood off my shoulders. The Three Tailed Beast would eventually be captured by Akatsuki, no matter what I would do. So why not help the story along a little bit?

I shrugged and continued on living with a smile on my face. Victory at last.

* * *

><p>When Mei got her status as Mizukage, she offered me a Kiri headband. "Here you go, Shinji-kun. You definitely deserve your place as a Jounin," she proclaimed, and smirked at me. She seemed so sure I'd take the offered headband. The moment I took the headband, I would dedicate myself as a Kiri ninja. A soldier, to die in service. To be forgotten in the passage of time.<p>

No, no I wouldn't take it. "No," I said. I already had dozens of shadow clones making sure they read as much as they could in the various libraries in Kiri, because I was planning on leaving Water Country. Sure, it'd cause one hell of a head ache once I dispelled the shadow clones, but at least it'd be worht something, yes?

My single worded statement shocked Mei. I managed to reason with her. Thankfully, she understood my reasons. I did not want to dedicate myself to any faction just yet. It'd only tie me down. At least, that's what I told her.

So, that lead to me travelling out of Water Country to wherever the adventure is. And I knew exactly where it was.

It was in Konoha.

Mei, bless her soul, not that she was dead or anything, I was just grateful she let me go without a big fuss like Akahime when I broke up with her to get out of Water Country, was kind enough to give me a legal passport, featuring me as a travelling citizen originating from Water Country.

* * *

><p>It took me a good week travelling by casual tree-jumping to reach Konoha's gates.<p>

"Halt!" Ah, and there we had two generic gate guards. I didn't think I got their names, but I knew it wasn't Izumo and Kotetsu. Dammit, I couldn't time it right, then.

I presented my passport and was allowed passage after being questioned about my business in Konoha. I merely claimed I was having a vacation. Since they weren't sensor types they couldn't sense my enormous chakra levels. Though I was pretty sure whatever sensor Konoha has would have sensed me by then, and were sweating bullets. Whatever that means. I mean, really? Sweating bullets? Talk about a source of ammunition.

Anyway, now that I was in Konoha, it was time to find the lovable little bundle of energy, Naruto Uzumaki. But first, a friendly visit to the Hokage of Konoha. Here's hoping it was the Third and not the Fifth. Alas, I saw no fifth head on Konoha's equivalent of Mount Rushmore. So I had at least come in time before Sasuke escaped. Those were good news.

I heard a commotion as I neared the administrative tower. Strange. But then again, I didn't think I ever saw many commotions in the anime. Oh well.

As I stepped closer to the noise, I was able to distinguish some of it. "He did it this time, Hokage-sama! He has stolen the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing! We can't just capture him! We should kill him already!" That sentence was followed with shouts of agreement.

Oh, well, what would you know. I found myself at the start of the Naruto series. Perfection incarnate.

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I know, pacing is horrible, absolutely horrible, the fight scene's the same and all that. But now that I find 'myself' in the actual start of the series, I can successfully do some of that pacing right. However, should you still be uncomfortable reading this illiterate piece of literature, then try reading as if someone told you a story instead of imagining words. That _might _help. If not, then I'm screwed.

Oh, and you have no idea how grateful I am of you reviewing, subscribing and fav'ing! It's a seriously good feeling I get! It's like I came or something! Just not as creepy... Whatever, just please continue reviewing, guys!

Oh, and a side note, if you notice anything (and I seriously mean anything), don't hesitate to drop in a note. The story wrong? I'm wrong? Don't mention my pacing, I know that you'd prefer scraping bullshit up from a busy highway than read that, but still, if you have any advice on how I can improve, again, don't hesitate to drop a review! Also, yes, I know it's much shorter than the previous chapter, but bear with me for this one, please. I promise you that the next one will not be as short as this one!


	3. Planning For The Invasion

I see lots of Konoha ninjas leap outwards, probably on the command of the Hokage. I approach the Hokage's position. Perfect, I'm behind him. For extra awesomeness and surprise, I decide to lean casually against the wall. I always wanted to be this awesome. Now that I have the chance, I'll take it!

"Hokage-sama, I advise sending a squad to the woods. Naruto is most likely there." I say. The Hokage spins around so quickly I almost lost my 'cool' façade! Damn can he move for one his age! Wait, that came out way too wrong!

"Who are you?" He asks seriously. Ah, now I need some kind of awesome quote, and quick. Like, 'I'm me.' or something! No, not 'I'm me.'... No, neither that. Nor that...

Guess I'll just go with the truth, then. "I'm Shinji Takuma. At your service, Hokage-sama." I bow lowly to him, to show respect and to make him unaware of my smile. I finally meet the grandpa Hokage! And soon enough, I'll also meet Naruto! But I'll need to plan that out. No use rushing in and telling. The Hokage. About. The invasion... Huh...

I stand up from my bow with a smile on my face. A genuine smile, mind you, not a 'I am so happy I could rip out your intestines and strangle you with them!' smile. Though it'd be funny to see the Hokage creeped out like that, I highly doubt it would make a good first impression. And my smile was genuine because, well, he's the third Hokage! Do I need more of a reason than that? No!

"Well then, Takuma-san, mind telling me what business you have with Naruto? And why you think Naruto is in the woods?" He asks. He, too, sends a smile towards me. I highly doubt the smile is genuine like mine, more of a polite smile. Never mind that, though. I mean, this is the Hokage. He should be able to hide his true intentions well enough for me to not see through them. Right? Of course he could!

"Well, I personally have no business with Naruto Uzumaki. At least not now. I intend to, though." This makes the Hokage very wary, tensing him up. I notice this and put up a hand, and to ease his worries, I say, "Don't worry, no harmful business, I assure you." This seems to make the Hokage less wary, but still cautious of the new arrival. Me, that is. "And why I think Naruto is in the woods? Well, call it a hunch. You do have that peeping ball of yours to check on him, right?" I finish teasingly.

"It's not a peeping ball." The Hokage quickly says. Damn, that was quick! You'd almost think it would be instinctive. Probably is, if Naruto's antics and personality are anything to go by. "And how do you know of it? It was created by the second Hokage, and kept as an A-class secret. Only I and a select few others know of it." There he goes, tensing all up again. I sigh and walk two steps towards him.

"Easy. You know of your former student, Jiraya, right? Well, he's one of them. Get him drunk and you can make him tell you his deepest secrets." What a brutally efficient lie, right? If I had met Jiraya I'd buy, or steal, all the works he had on him. Wait, no, you didn't need to read that.

This made the Hokage seethe with anger. He mumbled something, something along with the lines of senbon, telling someone something and his giant scroll shoved somewhere where the sun doesn't shine and whipped cream. I'll let your imagination go wild with that one. "Well then, Takuma-san, I hope you won't-" "Tell anyone about your peeping ball. I promise you that, Hokage-sama." I interrupt. Oh shit, I just interrupted the Hokage. Here's hoping he won't get mad. Nope, he merely repeated an already said sentence.

"It's not a peeping ball." He sighed. I simply chuckled but my expression turned serious immediately afterwards. The Hokage followed with the same expression. "I have information that could be vital to the continued survival of Konoha, Hokage-sama. Can we take this to your office?"

* * *

><p>"So what information do you have that could be important to Konoha? I'll admit, I'm sceptical. After all, it is not often a civilian comes in and claims that."<p>

I nod as I and the Hokage arrived at the office to sit down and talk. "No, that is true, Hokage-sama. But first, how about we check up on little Naruto?" I ask politely.

"Yes, let's." He says, taking out that peeping orb of his. He put the ball on a red pillow close by and poured some chakra into he orb. He muttered Naruto's name, and an image appeared in the orb. It was the image of Naruto beating up Mizuki to protect Iruka.

Both me and the Hokage smiled when we saw Naruto receiving his headband from Iruka, effectively making him a ninja of Konoha. Naruto cried of happiness and hugged Iruka tightly. All that we saw through the peeping ball. Or whatever it is.

The Hokage put the ball back into a shelf in the desk. He adopted a serious expression as he looked at me. "How did you _know_ that Naruto was in the woods?"

I smiled smugly and said, "That is for me to know and for me-" I too got a serious face, "to tell you."

Yes, you can probably see where this is going. I told him about where I come from. Not from another world, no, but from Water Country. I decided to leave out the fact that I'm a dimensional traveller. Or, I think I'm travelling through dimensions... Never mind. And I told him that I could see the future. Or a part of it. And that it always concerned itself about Naruto Uzumaki. Probably because of his status as the container of the Nine Tailed Demon Fox. This shocked the Hokage. No one was supposed to know that aside from a select few of the Shinobi Council and himself. But he disregarded that fact, because he thought it absurd, but believable that I could see the future. Why believable? Because I told him about Naruto being in the woods, that's why.

I told him everything that I could about the future. I told him about Team 7's mission to Wave Country, where they would be intercepted by Haku and Zabuza Momochi. I also told him that if he received the mission he should save it for when Naruto gets tired of doing D-rank missions. Then he should show slight reluctance but then ultimately give Team 7 the supposed C-rank mission, given by the drunkard Tazuna of Wave Country.

I told him about the invasion of Konoha by Suna and Oto during the Chuunin exams. This surprised the Hokage, slightly, because he supposed it shouldn't have shocked him after all. After all, during the Chuunin exams the city would be legally filled with potentially hostile ninja. One of which, I reminded the Hokage, was the container for the One Tailed Raccoon. The elder Hokage seemed unsurprised by this fact. I also told him that behind this invasion was his former student, Orochimaru. This saddened the wizened Hokage greatly. His student had truly become obsessed with immortality. I also told him of his apparent 'affection' for Sasuke Uchiha, because of his Sharingan. This made the Hokage even sadder. He even let slip a single tear down his cheek. He looked far older than his age would suggest.

But he got a determined look in his face. He probably mentally told himself that if he let his sorrow take hold of him, all would be lost. The Will of Fire would die if Konoha's leader would grieve for the loss of one of their greatest Shinobi Konoha had ever produced. I told him he would die in the invasion. He simply nodded. I told him it would be a significant turning point for not just Naruto, but the entirety of Konoha.

I told him that Naruto, along with Jiraya, would search for the future fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju of the Sannin. The Hokage smiled reminiscently for that, and commented that Tsunade would without a doubt agree, given Naruto's personality being similar to Nawaki's. I told him that yes, Tsunade would agree, but only if Naruto mastered the Rasengan. Which he would, I told him.

I told him of Orochimaru's involvement in the chase for Tsunade, and why he hunted for her. She was, after all, the supposedly best medic in the entire continent. Which said a lot, given the amount of total Shinobi in the entire continent.

I told him about that Sasuke would defect from Konoha to go to Orochimaru's side, in the promise of more power. Power he would receive. I told him that Tsunade would send a team after him, a team that consisted of Shikamaru Nara as the team leader, with Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru, along with Neji Hyuuga as the team's trackers, Chouji Akimichi would be the team's heavy hitter, and Naruto, being the muscle of the group. They would be hindered repeatedly by the Sound Four and Kimimaro Kaguya. I told him that Chouji would be in Intensive Care because of the Akimichi pills and Neji would, too, be in Intensive Care for having an arrow fully penetrate his shoulder. They would all survive, because of Rock Lee's and the Sabaku siblings' intervention. Since Naruto had defeated Gaara and told him that Naruto's friends' love made him win over Gaara, Gaara had become Naruto's friend. That made the Hokage smile widely.

But alas, I told him that despite Naruto's efforts, Sasuke still managed to escape to Orochimaru's clutches. But I also told him that I would not intervene there. It was extremely important for Naruto's growth and determination. Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru made Naruto turn to Jiraya, who went on a training trip with Naruto for two and a half years. That, in turn, made the 'forgettable' and 'useless' Sakura Haruno into Tsunade's student. Capable student, too, since she 'inherited' Tsunade's feared and infamous super strength.

But that was all I told the elder Hokage. I didn't want to spoil too much, right? Shippuden would be the part of Naruto's life that would change the most from canon. That I assured myself. I would also make him aware of Hinata's love. Just saying.

"Is there any way to change the future, Takuma-san?" He asked me.

"I know of only one way to do that. At least for now." I told him.

"How?"

"Make me his personal trainer during the month's pause in the Chuunin exams instead of Jiraya." He agreed.

* * *

><p>The Hokage was kind enough to give me a one room apartment close to Naruto's. Bless his heart, too.<p>

I frequently went to a meeting with the Hokage to discuss battle plans along with Shikamaru's father, Shikaku Nara. Shikaku did seem sceptical at first, but he said that since it was on the Hokage's orders, he would definitely comply. The Hokage and me updated him about my supposed 'status' as a future teller. At this, the Nara clan head simply shrugged, stating that it couldn't be impossible. After all, people could create mountains, fountains, and teleport from one end of the world to another in less than a second. So why would it be impossible to predict the future and change it?

But the discussion we had the most was if the third Hokage should die or not. This discussion was long, but always kept at a cool headed level. It ended simple, though. After a very, very long discussion, and a few nights sleeping on the issue, we all came to a conclusion.

We would fake Hiruzen Sarutobi's death.

If you're wondering what good that would do, then listen up.

First, we'd fake his death by me using that bastardized version of the Flying Thunder God technique I had recently come up with. It was nowhere near as good as the fourth Hokage's, since it took some time for it to actually transport, and that you couldn't mark people with it, but it was far better than nothing, and it was a reverse summoning jutsu, basically. Because of that, only Orochimaru will know of the Third Hokage surviving as a definite fact.

And since there is no body to bury, people will be lifted slightly. That, or they will think he was burned. But honestly, the more optimistic of the people would think he somehow survived. The optimistic being Naruto, of course.

The reason why was because both me, Hiruzen and Shikaku knew that the Third Hokage's death was an important turning point for the future. If it didn't happen, then a lot of things wouldn't happen. Like the search for Tsunade, thus in proxy, Naruto learning his father's personal jutsu, the Rasengan. Therefore, Naruto would not have a jutsu to compare to Sasuke's Chidori. That was important, should Naruto still chase after Sasuke. All of us, Shikaku, Sarutobi and me believed it that yes, it was necessary for Naruto's development.

We discussed the possibility of Naruto gaining a summoning contract, too. It was important, I told them, that Naruto gained the Toads' summoning contract. I didn't tell them why. After all, I didn't tell them about Naruto learning Sage Mode by Fukasaku and Shima. But I did tell them that Naruto was to have the Toads' summoning contract. So, therefore, Sarutobi sent a messenger bird to Jiraya after all, stating that if he didn't come immediately Sarutobi would ban the Icha Icha series.

That, of course, made Jiraya arrive the day after the message was sent. And damn, is he a hilarious person to be around.

We decided to update him on the situation as well. Jiraya agreed on most points, and the ones he didn't agree on, Hiruzen's faked death and him not training Naruto, he didn't have the final say in the end. Surprisingly, Jiraya became unnaturally serious once Orochimaru's invasion was mentioned. Then he even agreed to let me become a summoner of the Toads. Serious Jiraya is serious.

The Hokage claimed that my clairvoyance was to become an S-class secret, punishable by death. That, of course, went unsaid, seeing as there were now only three other people besides me that knew of this secret. They claimed that they would bring that secret with them to the grave. I thanked them for it, and bowed deeply as appreciation.

The mission to Wave was coming up. I had informed Jiraya, Shikaku and Sarutobi that Team 7 would face off with both the Chuunin class missing-nin the Demon Brothers, Haku and Zabuza. Though it worried them greatly, I assured them that they would survive with minor injuries. Well, mostly, seeing as Sasuke would lose a lot of blood, but he would survive. That didn't really worry any one of them. I had told them that Sasuke would betray Konoha, only to join the wretched Orochimaru of the Sannin. They immediately began to dislike him, become disheartened by that fact-to-be. However, I didn't lose hope. I thought that as long as we trained Naruto very well, brought to a level that Kakashi himself would have trouble with, he would win over Sasuke at the Valley of the End. Should Sasuke still win, then I would personally take Naruto on that training trip that lasted two and a half years. Jiraya wouldn't join, seeing as he had his information network to worry about.

And the three agreed to my plan.

* * *

><p>Team 7 did come back from Wave, at full strength, as I predicted. That was the first time I saw Naruto. As I had guessed, he was the lovable, orange-clad bundle of energy and sunshine. Once he got the A-ranked reward, I began to walk towards his favourite ramen stand, Ichiraku's. I saw people glare at him as he ran past me. I frowned, but I ended up shrugging. Once Naruto defeats Pain he'll be widely accepted by the populace.<p>

I neared the ramen stand. Ah, you could hear Naruto yelling for a miso ramen. I chuckled at the thought. I approached the stand and pulled aside the coverings. I said to the waitress, Ayame, I think her name was, "I want whatever he's having, please." and pointed a thumb towards Naruto. Ayame merely smiled, nodded and went to prepare the miso ramen for me.

I turned towards Naruto and said, "So, my name is Shinji Takuma. What's yours?" I asked him kindly, taking great care to give a real, comforting smile to him.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, I'm going to be the next Hokage-ttebayo!" Of course Naruto's response was that. He yelled it out, too, and I noticed some people seemed to stare hatefully at the stand. I rolled my eyes and began to give a true smile to Naruto.

"Well, I can definitely say that I believe you there, Naruto Uzumaki. I see that you have lots of potential, that's for sure." I told him. The ramen arrived, I saw, and both of us began to eat, though I did eat at a lot more sedated pace.

When I finished my bowl, I saw that Naruto had finished his thirtieth. You'd almost think he inhaled the stuff! Wait, yes, yes he did...

I chuckled at the sight. I stood up from the seat and put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto Uzumaki-" he looked at me curiously. "I'll see you later." Naruto smiled widely and began to eat his thirty first bowl of ramen. I walked off towards my apartment I got from the generous Hokage. I'll probably repay some time, though. Oh well, just live with the flow, I say.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>OK, so, I have something to add. This story just took more of my not-so-precious time. I think that it actually turned out satisfactory. Don't you?


	4. Arriving!

I relaxed on the bed in my apartment. For a village, it sure does have some uncomfortable beds. But I guess it's because it's supposed to keep everyone as awake as possible. In case of an attack on the village. Civilians did need to be escorted out, after all. And they would, seeing as Orochimaru was planning on invading Konoha.

I looked down at myself as I sat up. Yep, my clothes are still there. Good thing I don't drink, or else I'd be busting a few caps up people's asses, just for the fun of it. Last time I drank I ended up in a police station due to excessive and unnecessary violence. Glad I was so drunk I couldn't even remember that.

Speaking of my clothing, I wore a white kimono with some black flames at the bottom of it. I had several of these, as I simply loved the design it had. I even still had my wooden sandals on. Damn do they make a lot of noise when one walks. Though to me, it sounds more like music than anything. The clacks it makes as it hits the floor, the clacks as it leaves the floor, all beautiful music I say. And it helps when you train your muscles. I still had those weights I had during the Bloodline Civil War on. Sure, they were inscribed into my skin, but every now and then I would add more weight onto the seals. As time went by I noticed that I went faster and faster, even when I put more weight upon the seals. Damn am I going to become fast when I take them off. Another year's time and I should be as fast as Rock Lee when he has his weights on! And that is quick.

I yawned and stretched. I stood up to survey the small apartment. It's what you'd expect, really. Small couch, table with two chairs, four doors, one leading to the kitchen, one leading to the bathroom, one to the bedroom and the last to the hallway outside. Nothing special. Just as I liked it. Seem as ordinary as possible to avoid suspicion.

Though I guess a white kimono does tend to stand out slightly when I think about it...

* * *

><p>I walked towards the ramen stand, seeing as I had absolutely nothing else to do. I hoped that Naruto was there as well. I wanted to chat a little with the lovable ball of energy. "One standard ramen, please?" I say as I pushed the hanging cloths aside. I noticed with disappointment that Naruto was not here. I notify the chefs, Teuchi and Ayame about it, as I pointed a thumb to my side. "Where's blondie?" I ask.<p>

"Oh, he said something about finding Konohamaru and his friends. Why?" Ayame asked.

"I just wanted to know if Naruto knew anything about the upcoming Chuunin Exams. I'd like information about it is all, really." I assured her.

So it might be today that Team 7 meets the Sand Siblings, huh? Interesting. It would definitely be an interesting development, seeing as I had already interfered. I might even be able to do something about Gaara's unstable seal. I might not be able to do much, seeing as I haven't been able to learn anything really good just yet, but it's much better than nothing.

I think I'd even interfere in their meeting, build up trust with all parties, maybe. But Naruto and his team take priority.

It's decided! I'll be sure to calm Gaara down a little, so his target is not Sasuke but me instead!

Wait...

That might not be a good thing at all...

Sealing time! Oh, how I love seals! Especially when they're for doing someone some good! And in this case, for Gaara! After he's, you know, not insane...

* * *

><p>"Now, now, no need to be so angry, 'Gaara of the Desert'!" I smile at the small crowd. I had arrived the moment Gaara was about to threaten Team 7. All eyes immediately lock onto me. I had put a seal on Naruto's shirt when I clapped him on his shoulder back at the stand. Yes, that's right, I had finished the bastardized version of the Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God technique. Still takes far too much chakra, and is not as fast just yet, though. Good thing I'm basically a chakra monster with temporary with chakra suppression seals on me to make me hopefully feel like a low-class shinobi. I could still use chakra, thankfully, but it used too much time, so I had already prepared a Kawarimi.<p>

Naruto points at me dramatically and takes a step back, yelling "Hey! You're that guy from Ichiraku's!"

I look towards Naruto and smile a genuine smile. I mean, it is Naruto! How can you dislike the dude? Honestly... "Yes, that'd be me! Pleased to meet you again, Uzumaki!" I ruffled his hair. I turned to face Naruto's team. "And that would be your team. If I remember correctly, you, the pink-haired girl would be Sakura Haruno, and you with the hair shaped like a duck's butt," snickers from Naruto and Konohamaru and his friends, with glares from Sasuke and Sakura, 'Don't insult Sasuke-kun', "You would be Sasuke Uchiha." I say. I ignore the glares and turn towards the little squirts. "Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon, yes?" The three nodded and Moegi and Udon bowed. Konohamaru just crossed his arms and gave a big grin.

Lastly, I turned towards the Sand Siblings. "From oldest to youngest, it's Temari, Kankuro and Gaara. Correct?" I rubbed the back of my head, pretending to be embarrassed, "Or was it that the red-head is Kankuro and the guy who stole make-up from his sister-" queue giggle from Temari, a shout from Kankuro 'It's war-paint, dammit!' and a glare from Gaara, with some sand slowly turning around him, "who was Gaara, again? I don't seem to remember." I say pathetically. That's a lie, of course. How can you forget the sand-manipulator, Gaara? I got an answer to that! You don't.

"Temari, Kankuro. Let's go." Gaara threatened. The older siblings immediately got frightened and followed the youngest of the Sand Siblings. Cowards. If they just showed compassion towards Gaara from the moment he was born, and anger at their uncle when he tried to attack Gaara, it would make Gaara a much more pleasing person to be around. Alas, fear got in the way yet again.

"Screw them! You were awesome there!" Naruto yelled and pointed at me. I chuckled. I replied back to Naruto, "Why thank you, Uzumaki." I said. I ruffled his hair some more. That drew a cheeky grin from the blonde.

"Who are you, sir?" Sakura asked. Of course it would be Sakura, since Sasuke was too proud to ask me anything unless he really had to, or was ordered to do so. Bastard.

I smiled at her and tilted my head serenely, "I am Shinji Takuma. Pleasure to meet you, Haruno." I held out my hand to shake hers. She took it and shook pleasantly.

"Hn." Guess who.

"My my, Uchiha, you should consider lowering your ever so extensive vocabulary so that us lower folk can bring ourselves to understand your genius!" once again, queue snickers from Konohamaru's team and Naruto. I merely smiled smugly. I always wanted to say something like that. Take that, Uchiha pride! You can't mess with the zess! Though I have no clue what 'zess' is...

"Hn." And I'm stumped.

"And he speaks yet again with his holy voice! We art not worthy of thy presence, O mighty Uchiha-sama!" I say, bowing at the waist at Sasuke. This flustered the Uchiha slightly. He ended up simply wandering off, with Sakura close on his tail. Damn useless, no-good fan-girls.

"You know, for a weird guy, you're pretty cool, Takuma-san!" Moegi commented with a smile.

I smiled back and said, "Please, just Shinji is fine. That counts for all of you little squirts." I added that last part with a slight sternness.

I immediately lighten up and invite Naruto to Ichiraku's. In other words, invite him to empty my wallet, as I found out later.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Naruto?" I asked Naruto, as he inhaled some more ramen.<p>

"Hm?" he said, looking at me with some of the broth dripping from his mouth.

"Would you be willing to die for your comrades? To give it your all to save them? To save your friends no matter the personal costs to yourself?" I asked him seriously. I didn't even look at him, though. I didn't, because I simply thought it would look a little better if I started picking at my food, look as if I hadn't been willing to do everything for my comrades. And I wasn't. I was a coward at heart. I might be powerful, with the Rinnegan and Tailed Beast level chakra, and knowledge of lots of seals and jutsu, but just because I have lots of power doesn't mean I'm not afraid of losing something, anything, precious to me. I was, after all, a coward at heart.

Naruto, however, "You bet! I'd do anything if it meant my precious people would be happy!" I smiled at his response. Even at such a young age, to be as emotionally strong as Naruto. It says a lot of things. Despite all the pain Naruto has, he still believes in the good of humanity. He doesn't lose hope, because he knows there is something good in all humans. He doesn't hate the people that were bad against him because he knew there was a reason for it. He knew. He didn't think. He knew. I admire his internal strength.

"That is mighty good to hear, Naruto. But in order to protect your precious people, whoever they might be, you need to be strong-" Naruto was about to yell something out, probably 'Don't worry! I'm going to be the Hokage', but I interrupted him, "Strong, enough, to defeat the enemies out there. There are people stronger than the old man Hokage, but a lot younger than him. Trust me, I know." I am, after all, one of them. I might not have his experience in the field of combat or leadership, but in sheer power, I am stronger than the old man. And younger, too. No white hair just yet.

"Who could possibly be stronger than the old man? He's the Hokage! The Hokage is the strongest ninja ever!" I smile at Naruto's naivety. While it is true that the Hokage is a strong person, otherwise they wouldn't be a leader of a village, they are far from the strongest. There are, after all, missing-nin that are so powerful they can destroy an entire village in a single jutsu. There are both Pain and Deidara. They both had jutsu that could decimate an entire village the size of Konoha and much of the surrounding area. Sure, Deidara's was at the cost of his life, but it was still a jutsu. One I think was bad-ass enough to become one of my favourite Akatsuki deaths.

"Yes, the old man is ridiculously strong, but not so that he can survive, let's say, an arm through the chest. No one can come back from that, much less an arm through the chest twice." What a lie. Naruto gets a Chidori through his chest twice, and I'm pretty sure that it was through a lung, and almost hit his heart, if I'm not mistaken.

That seemed to sadden Naruto slightly. But right after I saw it was there he bounced right back up. "But that won't happen! The old man's too strong for that to happen! He won't die!"

I chuckle and nod as I turn towards Naruto, "Yeah. Yeah, you're right, of course." Naruto grinned stupidly. We both continue to eat the ramen, I even ate a little bit more.

Now where did my sudden sad mood come from? I wonder... Could it be that I finally am missing my family? No, that can't be it. I never liked my family very much, even if I saw them as a constant in my life. Perhaps it's just one of those days, maybe? Like a woman getting a period? Just less creepy, maybe.

I think it's time I go back to the Hokage. I think I'd make an excellent Tokubetsu Jounin. Or maybe an ANBU? That would be mighty nice. To die in service might not be my style, but then again, who's to say I will die in service? With my abilities and chakra amount, I am able to do anything I want! I could become Hokage if I wanted to! I have the abilities of one, why shouldn't I? I could even get the forbidden-

No. No, I'm getting insane! As time goes, the dangers of power increase. All because of power. Hence why I don't _want _a leader, but _need_ a leader. Definitely now that I am getting more and more hungry for power. I was even about to think about various forbidden jutsu, like the Impure World Resurrection to strengthen myself through sealing the resurrected into me, allowing me to-

_No! _Don't even think about it!

I shake my head vigorously to clear my head of impure thoughts. Naruto eyed me weirdly. I merely smiled. "Yeah, I don't feel too good, Uzumaki, I'll have to go. Sorry..." I say sheepishly.

Naruto pouts. "Aw, and we had such a good conversation!"

"Don't worry, I'll probably be back by tomorrow."

* * *

><p>I lay down on my bed. I sighed and told myself, "This is why I had to have Akahime around. She would hit me whenever I was quiet for too long." I sighed again, "Then again, there was also the fact she hit me too often, when she wanted to, really. There has to be someone else around that can be attractive enough and still kick some major ass. And be younger than Tsunade of the Sannin. There has to be... Ah, yes." I slowly grinned all to myself.<p>

"How can you forget the Snake Mistress of Konoha, former student of Orochimaru, Anko Mitarashi? She will do." I grinned to myself before taking a blank expression. "Why do I sound like I'm going to treat her like a toy? Meh, it was wrongly worded is all." I convince myself. Besides, she was sexy as hell, wicked as hell, and best of all, violent as hell. Heck, she was old enough, too. And I might be able to make sure she takes extra care when she goes up against Orochimaru of the freaking Sannin. I might even find a way to remove her Cursed Seal so she won't be enslaved by Orochimaru's false promises of power instead of pain. Worth a try, I say.

Already I began formulating counter-seals for the Cursed Seal of Heaven in my head.

* * *

><p>OK, so the Chuunin exams are almost up. That means that Naruto's team is about to meet the rest of Konoha's Genin teams that are qualified by their teachers. I might not remember much of the second arc of the anime, but there might still be something I can do.<p>

Okay, let's see. I know that Team 7 will stumble upon a group of Genin 'trapped' at second floor when they really have to go to third floor. Sasuke will comment on seeing through the genjutsu, and drag Sakura into the comment somehow. Then Neji stops Sasuke and 'orders' him to fight him. I think. Or it was something with the two 'guarding' the door to room 207, I think it was, would engage either Sasuke or Neji, but Lee would interfere. Neji would scold Lee, then everyone walks off. Lee follows Sasuke and challenges him. I know that much, at least. Gai and his summon arrive and chastise Lee for being about to use the First Lotus, or something.

Team 7 would arrive at that place where they would go to an examination, that was really not one, but all an elaborate hoax that was supposed to test the teams' information gathering skills without being detected. After some card reading by Kabuto, Orochimaru's spy, some intimidation from Ibiki Morino, head interrogator of the ANBU, and lots of nervousness from all the Genin, Anko would arrive through the window. I remember, because she did cover next to nothing of her chest. Yeah, that's one of the reasons I remember clearly... I know, I know, I'm a pervert. I even had the signed Icha Icha series to verify that claim.

OK, so I have the first stage of the Chuunin exams down.

The second stage I remember well enough. Training Ground 44, the Forest of Death. That's the point where Sasuke gets his Cursed Seal. But it's an important part in Naruto's development as well as Sasuke's. So I wouldn't interfere.

Even when I had already developed the counter-seal for the Cursed Seal of Heaven.

* * *

><p>I went to the Dango store. As luck would have it, I saw some purple hair with a beige cloak. I entered the almost-empty store, a bell ringing in the background. I sat down at a high table close behind Anko's. A small waiter came to me and I ordered some ordinary dango to go with.<p>

I saw Anko turn around and put her arms behind her, on the table. I, too, turned around to face her. "You're not a regular, are ya?" She smirked.

I smirked as well, "Nope. But seeing such an attractive young lady sitting all alone, it broke my heart." I say playfully, putting a hand on my chest in mock sadness. That elicited a laugh from Anko as she threw her head back. And how her breasts don't jump out of her cloak, I'll probably never know. Maybe. She probably uses some form of sticking seal. Or maybe glued her fish-net top together with the cloak and let the glue dry? Maybe, maybe. All theories, of course. Perverted theories, but theories, nonetheless.

"Ah, and we have a joker in our midst. Tell me, what ever do you want?" She asked, looking smugly at me.

I turned serious and tapped the left side of my neck. "I think I know a way to remove that Cursed Seal of yours."

This shocked her two ways to hell. But she quickly turned angry, slamming the table. It almost broke, though my face betrayed no expression. "How the hell do you know that, fucker?" She sneered.

"Does it matter how I got to know it or not? I'm willing to offer you a way to remove that seal that brings you pain. Is that not enough? Should I offer you a seal similar to yours, but cannot bring you any pain? Or something else? Name it!" I say angrily.

"Fuck you! No one can remove the blasted thing, don't give me false hope!" She shouts.

OK, now she's just being unreasonable. "I'm giving you a way out of slavery, and here you are, trying to antagonize me? I'm not going to beg to remove it." I put my hands up in mock defeat, scowling at her. "If you still want to be bound to that monster, Orochimaru, then be my guest."

She suddenly grabs the scruff of my white kimono, and with a desperate and pleading face, she pulls down the side of her coat to show her mark and says, "Remove it. I don't care how much pain it gives me, remove the fucking thing! Now!"

I smile benevolently and stand up as she releases her hold of me. "Gladly."

* * *

><p>OK, so now to draw the kanji for seal... and finished! I wipe my forehead as I finish the complicated blood seals array. It might have taken the same space as the Evil Sealing technique, but this doesn't seal it. It removes it. I say to Anko, who sits in the middle of my cleared living room, "So, basically, what it does is it removes the 'unnecessary' parts of the seal at first, such as the transformation, creating an opening for my seals to invade. It'll be painful at first. Probably. If it isn't, good. Don't worry if the pain worsens. It's supposed to. It does essentially remove something that has fully integrated into your chakra network. And you won't be able to work at full strength for a couple of days, but it's nothing you should worry about." Anko simply nods, too nervous to say anything.<p>

I nod back to her. I go through various hand seals, first Dog, then Hare, Rabbit, Snake, Rabbit, Tiger, Dog, and lastly, Ram. I then slam my hand inside an intricate circle and pour the necessary amount of chakra into the seals. As the blood red seals close towards Anko, she begins to groan in pain. Smirking, she was about to say something, probably 'Is this it?', but is interrupted by a surge of pain strong enough to make her let out a yelp of pain, and then a groan. Once again, she smirks, "This it?" she says, as the first tomoe of the Cursed Seal of Heaven goes away. "No." I say. "That's the first tomoe. There's still the second and third." Those words frightened Anko, but she remained quiet, except for a few groans of pain every now and then.

* * *

><p>"There. Finished." I say, as the last of the blood seals evaporated from Anko's body. Anko slowly puts her coat back on, a stunned expression adorning her face. I hand her a hand held mirror. As she sees it see almost tears her coat back off, takes the mirror, and damn near cries.<p>

"It's gone..."


	5. The Curse Has Been Lifted

"No, it's not completely gone just yet, Anko." I shake my head.

"What! Remove it completely, then! Now!"

"It has been too long in your chakra system. That was merely half the process. The complicated seals I made here were to remove the source of the tainted chakra. Your body now needs to develop its own, untainted, chakra. That will take only a week, though. What the second step of the process is, is that we will purify the remaining tainted chakra from your system. That is the tainted part." I said. She had listened with rapt attention. I had lied, though. The purifying of the leftover tainted chakra would eventually dissipate into nothingness. No, the truth was that the seals I had drawn were incomplete. The Cursed Seal of Heaven's visible parts were gone. Not all of it.

In the rush to leave Water Country, I had checked out the library with many Kage Bunshin. The knowledge I had gained from there was absolutely fascinating. But the shinobi library didn't have an unlimited amount of scrolls about sealing. So I had basically made the seals up myself. Therefore, in order to completely remove Anko's cursed seal, I had to look up scrolls of sealing in the Konoha shinobi library instead. I might even have to check out the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing, if it came to that. I'd need the Hokage's permission for access to that specific seals scroll, though. Hopefully he would allow it.

"O- OK, so what, what now? Do you do some fancy seals work or something?" She asked, frantic to get that cursed love bite off of her neck, permanently.

"Yes." I state plainly. I figured trying to stay calm and plain might help her calm down.

* * *

><p>It so happened that I did get permission from the Hokage himself to search the shinobi library for those scrolls. Though it was after a lot of debate, since it was not entirely necessary that I checked it out. Besides, I wasn't even an official ninja of Konoha. But even with all those small problems, I still got permission, and checked out the library, with 20 or so Kage Bunshin for each seals section. And damn, for a neglected art, there sure are lots of scrolls for them. Given due time, I'd even be able to successfully replicate the Fourth Hokage's legendary jutsu, the Flying Thunder God. Eventually, anyway.<p>

I even got permission to search some of the classified scrolls of sealing. After a while, that is. I did get my hands on the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing, too, but despite the name, it didn't have any actual sealing arts in it. How conveniently misleading. Think the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing has some dangerous jutsu in it, and bam, nothing. So misleading. Sure, it had the Kage Bunshin jutsu, along with some other jutsu that were destructive enough to eliminate an entire village, but seals? Not so much. And since that was what I was looking for, I did not dare look at any other jutsu. Just in case I would get sick with power. Here's hoping I didn't jinx it.

Eventually, as in a day before the Chuunin Exams, that's to say a week, I got enough knowledge, along with a excruciatingly painful headache, to seriously attempt to remove the Cursed Seal of Heaven. I could've made my own kind of Cursed Seal, but I don't think that would be very good to do. I don't want to end up as another Orochimaru. Someone who has become sick with power, only to die, because of it. No, I want to not gain power, something I have in abundance, but willpower. I have next to none. If it looks like I'm losing, I'll give up, or my morale goes down. I need to gain a stronger willpower. That, or seal myself into someone who has. Like Naruto.

Now there's an idea.

At least he wouldn't be scorned by villagers for having little me sealed inside him, that's for sure. Hey, the people might even see me being in him as a sort of balance against the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. That is if Naruto is willing to have me sealed up inside him. I might act as a mediator between the two. Maybe, maybe. There is, however, lots of things that could go wrong. So instead of being sealed inside Naruto, I could seal myself inside Hinata, maybe? Maybe.

Never mind that. One thing at a time. First thing's first, the removal of the Cursed Seal of Heaven. The tainted chakra is still being produced, but in small amounts, and it could still be able to cause the bearer some pain, should Orochimaru still be around to cause it such.

Time to remove the Cursed Seal of Heaven! What an ironic name, though. Cursed Seal of Heaven...

* * *

><p>"Are you sure it will work this time, Takuma? Last time you said it would remove it completely." Anko asked. Once again, we found ourselves in my cleared living room, just this time, instead of the seals taking up only the floor, now it was so big that it also covered the walls, the ceiling, heck even some of the space in the kitchen. But it would be worth it in the end. Here's to hoping that Anko won't assault me when it's over. Because this would be the painful part. At least according to my calculations.<p>

"It did work last time, just not as you expected. This, however, should remove your tainted curse, and, as an extra bonus, should also make you immune to most poisons." Anko's eyebrows rose. Then she frowned.

"It's for Orochimaru's snakes' poisons, isn't it?"

"Correct."

Suddenly, before Anko could respond to my reply, I slammed my hand on a similar circle, making the other seals glow an ominous red before once again pouring towards Anko's shoulder. She screamed in intense pain as the tainted chakra began to extract itself from her very life chakra system. And I swear I even saw some of her blue coloured chakra escape her mouth when she let out a particularly nasty scream. Here's hoping it will work...

Slowly, I see some of my blood seals become black. And the blood seals became blacker the closer in you got to the center of the sealing array. Anko, that is. Hopefully, that means that the cursed seal was seeping out of her.

And the entire process took about an hour and a half, if I had to take a guess. Half an hour from getting some of your tainted life chakra out of you, that cannot be anything but painful.

Finally, it ended. The closest blood seals had almost burned away, had I not been reinforcing it constantly with a part of my chakra. And for even a chakra monster like me, I have to say, it took quite a bit of chakra. How much? Oh, I don't know, to the point where I got so exhausted I'd not even doubt that even the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox would feel tired. At least feel sleep coming onto its edges.

Anko was panting heavily in the center circle. I recovered quickly enough so that I could walk without looking as if I got a bum knee, since I hadn't lost any of my life chakra. I stood up, albeit somewhat shakily, and said, "Let's not do that again, shall we?" She did nothing to respond. I was assuming that she was contemplating her newly found freedom from Orochimaru's twisted clutches. I decided to lay back a bit. Anko needed some space, and I was willing to give it to her.

Finally, after a lot of contemplation on Anko's part, and waiting on mine, she looked up, straight into my eyes, a stunned expression adorning her face. I smiled benevolently at her, reassuring her that, yes, her cursed seal was in fact, was gone. And it had taken a week of searching, experimenting and testing. Thank goodness for Kage Bunshin.

"Why?" She asked. "Why did you remove it? What use could you possible have for me?"

I smirk creepily at her, reminiscent of a certain snake Sannin. I was trying to creep her out. And I succeeded, seeing as she tensed up. I chuckled. I love scaring people like that. "Don't you know the saying, 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth?' That applies here."

She merely widens her eyes slightly, but then gets a mischievous spark in them. "Oh, you want to have a little 'favour', do you?" She waggled her eyebrows.

I immediately tense up, "W-What! P-P-Preposterous! I-I'd never!" I stutter out. Why in the world would she suggest such a thing! Absurd! Absolutely absurd! I'd never take advantage of such a delightfully tempting- I-I-I mean... You know what I mean!

She threw her head back, laughing tauntingly at me. At me! Damn the woman! "So, you're the shy type, eh?" She put her coat back on, and leaned towards me, smiling lustrously, "I like 'em shy." She winked.

I blushed heavily and closed my eyes. I turned away from her. What was with me when I decided to remove her cursed seal? How did I not know that she would chase me around because I removed it! I should have known! She will be the death of me, I just know it. "P-Please remove yourself from m-my personal space...?" Damn, I'm beginning to sound like Hinata!

Anko giggled, but she closed the small distance between us, as in... Yes, you guessed it.

She kissed me.

* * *

><p>I sighed. Anko was clutching my arm like it was a lifeline, and nuzzling her cheek on the crook of my neck. It was yesterday I had removed the Cursed Seal of Heaven. It was today that Anko had an appearance in the Chuunin exams.<p>

And, now that I think about it, it wouldn't so bad. Sure, I now have a crazy girlfriend who definitely isn't afraid of hurting me physically, but that's a good thing. Not that I'm a masochist or anything. Just that she would be able to, let's say, wake me up when I'm too lazy to wake up. Sort of like Shikaku's relationship with his wife. I met her once. She scared me.

Anyway, I and Anko were in that dango store we met each other. She had inhaled dango like no tomorrow, strangely reminiscent of Naruto's eating habits, and doing so, practically drained my spare money. Not that I minded, really. She was good in the sack, and paying a few hundred in dango wasn't really that bad. Wait... You did not need to see that.

"Don't you think it's time you go to the Chuunin exams, Anko?" I turn my head slowly towards Anko.

She hums, and nuzzles closer to me. She squeezes my arm even more, didn't even think that was possible. And damn, does it hurt. But I just can't be angry at her, with that cute, content smile of hers. Do I always have to go to the crazy ones, me? Yes? Well, okay then.

Suddenly, she shot up, let go of my arm and startling me so much I almost fell off my chair in the process. "Oh shit! The Chuunin exams!" She quickly puts a peck on my cheek with a 'See you later!' and used a shunshin to go to the Shinobi Academy.

What. Just happened? Oh, right. She kissed my cheek. I blushed heavily, but I manage, somehow, to force it down. I sigh. I'm beginning to act too much like Hinata, eh? I rub my hand at the spot she pecked me at. I even rubbed sore for some reason. Probably because some of the bits of dango she had eaten had stuck on my cheek. Oh well. Time to see Naruto, if my interference in this fictive universe has done anything to change the story so far.

* * *

><p>I tap my chin as I slowly walk towards the Shinobi Academy after paying a hefty amount to the dango store owner.<p>

If I am in a previously thought fictive universe, wouldn't that make it factual? Or is it still fictional, albeit with my interference, becomes another universe altogether? Because there is that 'Infinite Universes' theory. It might even be true, and I found a portal in those hot springs back then. Who would've thought... And why didn't I think of that before? I slam my head against the nearest wall, which happens to be close to the Ichiraku's ramen stand.

Oh hell, I thought, as I continue walking with an obvious and angry red bruise displayed on my forehead proudly. Who cares about fiction or fact? Well, most do, and I do too, but to hell with that! I'm living a nerd's dream! I'm in the Naruto universe, with Tailed Beast level chakra and the Rinnegan! Albeit I'm currently hiding it, hence why no one is freaking out at the mere sight of my 'holy' eyes.

Which makes me wonder about the uses of Kage Bunshin. I know, I know, I'm scatter-brained. My thoughts are jumbled. They tend to lead from one thought to the other, but are usually linked to each other by some means or another. Anyway, about the Kage Bunshin. I think I heard from somewhere that muscle memory was a mental faculty. If that is so, then why can't I just train with Kage Bunshin to be able to do hand seals faster? To make stances for martial arts quicker to go into? Note to self. Use Kage Bunshin more. A lot more. Preferably so much that even I would be exhausted after two hours or so. Which would say about three thousand clones every day.

Oh dear, what mess have I stepped into myself this time?

I see the Shinobi Academy closing in. Finally. Took me a while to walk all the way here.

Oh, and there we have Naruto and his team exiting the Academy doors, along with a horde of other students. The only reason I recognized Team 7 was because of two of its members' bright hair colour. I mean really now, Sakura. Pink? Really? So impractical in the field of Shinobi. But then again, who am I supposed to talk? I was wearing a white men's kimono.

I approached Team 7, "Hello, you three. How are you this fine day?"

Of course, Naruto was the first one to respond, yelling out, "Hey, Shinji!" but was bonked harshly on the head by Sakura.

Sakura bowed at the waist, saying "I'm sorry about Naruto, Takuma-san."

I merely chuckled and shook my head, "Don't be, Haruno-san."

"Yeah, Shinji bought me some ramen! He's a totally cool dude!" Guess who said that so loudly most people turned this way? Yeah, Naruto.

Naruto's words seemed to comfort Sakura enough for her to relax. Good. No need to have her tensed up, now. And best to be in her good books, because later on, her strength will be equal to that of Tsunade's. And I don't want to end up a hole in the wall. No, sir, no please.

"Say, have you seen a woman around here? Purple hair? Beige trench coat? Wearing next to nothing under it?" My description of Anko lit a familiar little fire in Naruto's eyes.

"Yeah! She said to meet us in Training Ground 44! Do you know what we're going to do there?"

"Oh yeah." I chuckle ominously, deciding to put a seal-less genjutsu on the team. It displayed crackling thunder and scary rain. Team 7 gulped in response. Well, Sakura and Naruto did, excessively so. Sasuke just glared at me. Not that I minded, me being equipped with the oh-so holy knowledge that Sasuke glares at everything up till Shippuden.

"I definitely know what you're up against." I chuckle, a chuckle worthy of making Orochimaru proud. Kukukukuku...

Immediately after that, I disabled my personal little genjutsu and began to smile. Kindly, of course.

Without waiting for a reply or anything, I turned around and used that bastardized version of Naruto's father's Hiraishin jutsu. How I love seals...

* * *

><p>I appear next to my bed. The bed with a kunai dangling above it. I drop myself onto my bed and sigh heavily. How did it all come to this. I think it's time I think about all the stuff that has happened over last few years I've been in this dream, yes? Which it is, isn't it? A dream?<p>

Right?

Anyway, so, time to look back to all the stuff that has been happening. Let's see. I almost drowned in the Blue Lagoon. That somehow made me land into the Naruto universe. I met two people, one green loving energetic fun-ball, the other a temperamental woman with impractically long hair that was as red as fresh blood. They told me I had massive stores of chakra, which surprised me to no end, and the Rinnegan, which also surprised me. I mean, come on. How often do you almost die, all to wake up later, half-naked, with people able to run through whole forests in minutes, telling you that you have, of all things, chakra, and in massive amounts, along with the fabled Rinnegan? Not often, I tell you, not often. Though I have to say that it did take some time for me to get used to the idea of seeing out of both eyes equally well. I didn't do that before, you see.

So, I aided the Bloodline side of the Water Country's Civil War. More like I couldn't choose the other side. Not that I wanted to or anything, mind you. And, during my little stay in the future Mizukage's intensive training, I gathered enough experience and knowledge to successfully defend myself, should the need occur. And lucky me, it did. I was grateful that Mei trained me to put chakra in my bones before every fight, to strengthen them to the point where they could be, with enough chakra, of which I had in abundance, as tough and hard as diamond. That trick was useful especially against one of the current Mizukage's, Yagura, Seven Swordsmen. I don't remember how he looked like, but he sure as hell was big. Twice the height of any normal man and five times as wide! In other words, really big. He was a nasty piece of work, he was. I know, though, that he wielded Samehada, the sword of sharks. Too bad he managed to escape before I could put a kunai in his throat.

When the Bloodlines finally managed to bring down Yagura, appointing Mei Terumi as their leader, I had refused the position of Jounin. Whilst doing so, I had a bunch, if not dozens of Kage Bunshin check out the shinobi section of the library. The knowledge I gained from there was enormous, but simply not enough when it came to sealing. There was perhaps a single good scroll on sealing. How pathetic! Good thing I got permission to seek out Konoha's shinobi section of the library. That's a good source of scrolls on sealing, trust me there. Probably because the Third Hokage's and the Fourth Hokage's influence. Oh, and Jiraya's. They were, after all, seals masters. And I intend to become the next. After my initiation into the military of Konoha.

Then, after refusing the position of Jounin, I headed towards Konoha, taking many a stop, swooning many a lady and battering many a man on the way! Or, I don't know, taking strolls, finding libraries that were any good, that sort of thing. Whichever you pick. And then, after arriving to Konoha, I almost immediately go to the current Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. I told him a lot about the original Naruto's future. He had had asked a couple of times about why it resolved only around Naruto, and I had answered him 'The world works in mysterious ways. And in this case, it's so mysterious that you can't even shake a stick at it!' or something along the line. I think it confused the Hokage a lot, but I honestly didn't care one bit...

Okay, so maybe I did care a little that he understood what was coming out of my mouth.

Bah! I've been on the bed for too long now. Time to get up. Up. Up! _Up, dammit!_ I sighed. I could really use someone slamming on me right now...

Wait. Didn't Anko run into Orochimaru during the second stage of the Chuunin exams? Yeah, yeah that's true.

And the Chuunin exams are in their second stage now.

Shit.

Time to get crackin'!

Dammit, I still can't get up from bed. Oh well. I know for a fact that Anko will be alright in the end. Sure, she'll want me to remove the cursed mark from Sasuke, but I will not do it. I will have to explain to her what is going on, then, what with me being 'clairvoyant'.

Well, at least she, along with Sasuke, will be alright.

I hope...

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Okay, so maybe not the best of all the chapters, but I'm getting there. I promise you all, the next chapter will be within a week!

Wait.

Haven't all chapters been released within a week from the next? Nevermind!

I'll just put this out here. I don't mind you not reviewing. Honest! Though I get a good feeling in my stomach when you do, I understand you not reviewing. Seriously! Anyway, it's okay if you don't review, just as long as I get story-hits, I'm all good. Thank you!


	6. Meeting The Sage Of The Maelstrom

I had received an invitation from the Hokage to look over the preliminary exams of the second stage of the Chuunin exams. I, being curious little me, of course accepted the invitation for the preliminaries. I used a henge to transform into a more believable person. I used a generic Jounin disguise, one with short brown hair, the standard dark green Jounin vest with that red Uzumaki spiral on the back, with an allegiance to Konoha. I managed to suppress my enormous chakra reserves to the standard Jounin level chakra. It took quite a bit of seal work to do just that. It's easier for me to suppress my chakra signature to civilian level, for some very odd reason. Probably because before I had arrived in this universe, I was a chakra-less person. That is just a theory, anyway, but a plausible one at that.

Anyway, I stood beside the Hokage, acting as a Jounin bodyguard, watching the preliminaries ensue. It was quite the event, actually. Much more climactic than the original, what with longer pauses, and quick repairs of the stage itself. Quite effective repair, too.

I looked around myself. I myself was to the left of the Hokage on a separate stage above the entrance. I noticed that it was different from the original storyline. Must have been a new addition, then. To my left was Anko. Yeah, she definitely didn't recognize me. She was eyeing me as if she hadn't seen me before. Granted, I was under a henge, so she shouldn't have seen this version of me before.

To the Hokage's right was the preliminaries instructor, Hayate Gekko I think his name was. Yeah, that was his name. He had dark, shaggy hair, and very baggy eyes. He even had that chronic cough of his. He probably has some form of asthma then. Or maybe smokes cigarettes on a daily basis, just not now. Never mind, all you need to know is that he coughs frequently and is a decent swordsman.

To Hayate's right was another generic Jounin. Unremarkable, I noted. He had dark hair to his jaw, standard vest, suit, headband over his forehead, everything you'd imagine a generic, faceless, unremarkable Jounin would look like, really. Probably a bodyguard as well. Those were probably just the bodyguards for show, though. There were ANBU hiding in the shadows. Literally. Chakra is such a nifty little thing, isn't it?

The first match was some weird Sound guy whose name I intentionally ignored and Sasuke. I saw Sakura being worried. It made me smile, really. Those two would make a fine couple, wouldn't they? Still, they couldn't beat Hinata and Naruto. Not in any way possible, no, sir. Never mind.

The fight was pretty one-sided in the beginning. I remember that Sound guy had a chakra-sucking jutsu. It forced Sasuke to use his Cursed Seal to win, and Sasuke did use it. Now that I think about it, yes, that chakra from the Cursed Seal did feel disturbingly hateful. I have already mentioned to the Hokage that I had removed the Cursed Seal from Anko. He would without a doubt want me to remove it from Sasuke. But no, I'd have to make him understand. The Cursed Seal was important for Sasuke's, as well as Naruto's, growth. I would have to make the Hokage understand. And I'd have to tolerate Anko trying to force my hand to remove it. I'd have to make her understand as well.

I sighed. To use a famous quote, troublesome.

Kakashi, Gai, Asuma and Kurenai all stopped Sasuke from killing off the unimportant Sound guy. I'd personally just kill him. It'd be one less waste of precious air. I have already killed before, during the Bloodline Civil War. I didn't take it too hard, really.

That aside, Kakashi took Sasuke out of the arena, much to the worry of many a Genin in the arena. They didn't know what had come over their supposed friend, so of course they were worried. The next match was between Shino Aburame, the bug guy, and the Sound guy that had a broken arm, Zaku Abumi, I think his name was. He could blow air from some tunnels in his hands. This fight, too, was one-sided all the time, leaning in Shino's favour.

After the particularly anticlimactic fight, the next match was up. It was against the other weird Sound guy and Kankuro. This fight was first in favour of the Sound guy, but it turned out that the one assumed to be Kankuro was actually his puppet. After that, he decimated the Sound dude. Pretty uninteresting match, to be honest.

Next match was...

Oh god.

Sakura versus Ino.

I remember this particular match well, because it was so boring. So, I tuned out for the entire fight. I knew it would end in a stalemate anyway, so it was fine.

The two rivals were knocked out from the double-punch and were carried out. About time, too. So boring...

The match after that was Tenten versus Temari. I remember this match well, too. It was boring, just like the last one. Despite Tenten's valiant efforts, she lost due to Temari's affinity with wind. Rock Lee was about to interfere, but was halted by his teacher, Gai, before he could do anything.

Then it was Shikamaru, up against Kin Tsuchi, that girl from the Sound team that went up against Team 7 in the forest. The fight was even up till Shikamaru managed to catch Kin in his Shadow Imitation technique, and made Kin knock herself out by busting her skull against the wall. Clever, in my opinion, but not compared to anything to what Shikamaru will do later on.

After that was, and here it comes, Naruto against Kiba. Now that wasn't that bad of a match, actually. Naruto proved everyone that just because he wore outrageously coloured clothing, I mean, bright orange, really?, he could still kick ass.

Next up was a moving battle of the genius Neji Hyuuga against the shy Hinata Hyuuga. It was one-sided. If that wasn't obvious, I don't know what is. Despite Naruto's encouragement, Hinata still lost because Neji went with the intention to kill. Only by the timely intervention of Hayate Gekko, the preliminaries instructor, did Hinata survive. I shot a glance at Naruto, and saw him angry. Really angry. Like so angry he'd make the Devil cower in fear. Now that's a good sign. His anger would merely fuel his desire to train, something I'm willing to help him with.

The next match was Gaara against Rock lee. And that was an awesome fight. I wished the Hokage had installed a speaker system into the room, so we could listen to awesome metal music at the same time as watching the battles. Especially this one. When Rock Lee took off the weights on his shins, hot damn did it have to be heavy. It made me wonder why the platform he stood upon didn't crack, or why his kicks didn't have a larger punch. But it didn't matter in the end. Because of his taking off the weights, he was so much faster than anything I'd ever seen! And to think, he hadn't even opened any of the Eight Gates! If it weren't for my cloaked Rinnegan, I'd not have seen him at all. He's fast, without a shadow of a doubt.

But despite even opening up to the fifth gate of the Eight Gates, he still lost to Gaara. And he lost his leg because of Gaara's Sand Burial. If it weren't for Gai, Rock Lee would be dead.

The next match was Chouji Akimichi versus Dosu Kinuta. But it was unimpressive match. Chouji had used his Human Bullet technique, but it was ineffective Dosu Kinuta's Sound Drill.

And the preliminaries were over. Finally.

Though I guess it's good to see everyone who should have won win.

Now it's time to plan ahead.

* * *

><p>Okay, first, I'll have to be at the hot springs. That's where Ebisu will 'train' Naruto in water-walking. Good thing I do that instinctively now. Thank you again, Mei Terumi, you slave driver. I'll intervene, and if Ebisu challenges me, I'll just use my Rinnegan's ability to manipulate gravity and push him into the hot water. Just in case Naruto will ask, I'll tell him the truth. That it's a bloodline that has something to do with Wind Release. Which the Rinnegan does have something to do with. Along with the four other elements, Fire, Water, Lightning and Earth.<p>

I sigh as I lay down on my couch. I had long since disabled my henge, so I took my normal look. I heard a knock on the door. I groaned and sat up. The knocking turned into pounding the closer I came to the door. "Alright, alright, I'm coming, I'm coming." I groaned. I was sleepy and my head hurt for some odd reason. Probably because I hadn't been drinking enough water lately.

I opened the door and saw Anko standing there, a frown on her pretty face. "'Sup, Anko-chan?" I ask.

She forced her way in, shoving past me, storming into the room and plopped herself onto my couch. I watched nonchalantly as she produced a stick of dango from who knows where and began to eat, still that frown placed on her face. I closed the door behind me and watched her eat. Within seconds she was finished and threw the stick in my general direction. We were both silent for a minute. I decided to break the silence hanging in the air, "So, what's eating you, Anko-chan?"

She glared at me and got another stick of dango from her trench coat and began to once again eat. "You know damn well what I want, Shinji!"

I sigh and plop down beside her on the sofa. She, despite her sour mood, put her head on my lap and crossed her legs. I simply folded my hands behind my head. "I won't remove Sasuke's Cursed Seal if that's what you're asking."

Immediately she bolted up and glared at me, nose to nose. "Why not? Is it because you dislike him or something?" I look at her impassively, but inside, I was sweating bullets. I swear, I was sweating enough bullets to make any hard-ass sergeant cry in happiness.

"Yes, I dislike the guy, but not enough that I wouldn't want to remove that Cursed Seal. Trust me, I want to, but it has its risks." I say, making sure to put some distance between us, lest I blush. And I'd rather not.

"What risks? I survived getting the seal, I survived getting it off! He will too!" she yelled angrily.

"The risks are... I'm sorry, Anko-chan, but we will have to have the Hokage's permission to talk about it."

Now that caught Anko's attention. Why would the Hokage hold off my sealing genius? Well, at least it's good to see that my confidence in me hasn't budged.

It ended with a long, long argument. It was so ass-long, like the longest urinal. And believe it or not, it's really long. Thankfully, Anko was _kind_ enough to not hit me. Too much. We ended up taking it up with the Hokage himself in the end. It ended with that we told Anko about my apparent clairvoyance. To say she was at a loss for words would be like saying the Mizukage, Mei Terumi, had a bit of hair on her head. Yeah, she did bop me on the head a few times for not telling her, but she ended up, well... Let's just say both parties ended having a good time. And damn, does her cooking taste good. You'd definitely not expect her to be a good cook, would you? Must be a secret hobby of hers. One she should be damn proud of, I say. And she does look sexy in an apron. Something I was rewarded in saying. Rawr...

Anyway, looking past scarring you, she ended up understanding the situation. That Sasuke's Cursed seal was important to both his and Naruto's growth. Why their growth was important was due to a simple reason. Their growth would affect everyone's growth in proxy. That was my excuse. The real reason was that if I manipulated too much in the storyline, I'd not know what would happen. I couldn't have that. I interfered enough with me just being there, you know. Just talking to, let's say, the Hokage, informing him about various things, such as the invasion of Suna and Oto. It changes a lot of things. Letting the Hokage live, too, could be a significant blow to the standard storyline. I was even hesitant to use my bastardized version of the Hiraishin jutsu to get Sarutobi out of there.

Let's see, Land of Wave mission going exactly like it was supposed to?

Check! No disturbance there.

Chuunin Exams?

Check! Everyone who won in the original preliminaries also won in this one's preliminaries.

Good so far, but how would Sarutobi's survival of the invasion influence the storyline, if he had survived and still stay in Konoha? Let's see. Orochimaru would without a doubt still survive. The search for Tsunade would only be for healing Rock Lee and Neji, should Sasuke still defect. Which he probably would, considering his ever-present hatred for his brother, Itachi Uchiha. But Naruto would not learn the Rasengan. Not from Jiraya, at least. And I won't even touch on how it would affect the Shippuden arcs.

The Rasengan...

Maybe I could teach Naruto that. Maybe we would not get Sarutobi to die at all, not need to seal off Orochimaru's arms. Maybe not getting Sarutobi to die...

No! We shouldn't trespass into that territory. Sarutobi's death had to be faked. Naruto's growth depended on it. Konoha's growth depended on it. Maybe, to make Sarutobi's supposed death seem absolute, I'd make his corpse into a henged Kage Bunshin. But in order to do that, I'd have to be able to be inside that barrier that Orochimaru's servants, the Sound Four, put up. Good thing my version of the Fourth Hokage's Hiraishin works in the same manner as the original's. Only Orochimaru, and those he is willing to let know that he failed in killing the Third, and the Third himself, along with Shikaku, Anko, Jiraya, and me, would know the faked death of the Third.

Oh yeah. I think it's about time I sign that Toad Summoning Contract and strike a deal with Gamabunta, the Toad Boss, and meet the Toad Sages, Fukasaku and Shima, and learn Sage Mode, and stuff.

* * *

><p>I entered an unused training ground far away from the village. Training ground 34, it was. I opened the Toad Summoning scroll I had gotten from Jiraya. How I could have forgotten it I don't know. It mystifies me, but alas, there I was, holding that precious scroll. The precious... My precioussssssss... No, my imitation of Gollum isn't something that good. Note to self. Don't try it again.<p>

I opened the scroll. I saw Jiraya's name, and below it, a few spaces empty of any text written in blood. I bit my thumb, damn does it hurt, I tell you. I then wrote my name how I intended it to be written, with intricate kanji symbols. "Takuma... Shinji..." I mumbled.

I finished writing it. I did not notice anything different with me. "Well..." I whisper to myself, "Time to put it up for the test."

Boar, dog, bird, monkey, ram, slam hand down on the ground. "Summoning jutsu!" I shouted, as I poured as much chakra as I could into my hands, imagining the intricate symbols spread from my palms, with chakra flowing through the symbols themselves.

And in a gigantic puff of smoke, I felt sudden thrust upwards, making me instinctively latch onto whatever surface I was standing on with chakra. And hot damn was it a lot of smoke! Surprisingly enough, though, I didn't cough. I guess it's not that kind of smoke, more or less probably thick mist, maybe?

"Who dares summon the Boss of the Battle Toads, Gamabunta?" I heard a great voice say. I gulped in slight fright, but steeled myself.

"I am a new summoner, Gamabunta-sama." Gamabunta looks at me, which is funny, because I was standing on top of his head. I scratch the back of my neck and continue, "I am sorry, but the reason for me not bringing any alcohol is because it would ruin my bank account in order to get you even slightly buzzed. And my body cannot tolerate alcohol. Sorry..."

Gamabunta just stared at me for a minute, then he began laughing his ass off. At me. At me! At the great me! At- well, you get the idea. "Ha! I've never seen anyone who can't handle a small bowl of sake! If you don't drink anything, I'll make sure you can't ever summon me again!"

I visibly gulped at the situation. Last time I drank anything of alcoholic content, I almost puked my guts out. And that was over four years ago! Before I entered the Naruto universe! And now I'll have to drink some strong sake with a gigantic toad whose alcohol tolerance is up there with Tsunade's on a good day.

Maybe if I put enough chakra into my liver...

And I ended up drinking a small cup of sake after all. It didn't go too well...

* * *

><p>"Welp, and shen I was all like... HAY! You thar!" I think I shouted. "You panshy-ash mo-fo! Imma gonna kick you ash! Then I kicked hish ash!" and I barked out a loud laugh. Guess my chakra solution didn't go down too good.<p>

"Gwahahahah! I've never seen anyone with that low an alcohol tolerance! Damn, you were right, Takuma! Fine then! You're allowed to summon me! Congratulations!" Gamabunta bellowed. He then disappeared in a puff of smoke. He left me.

"He left me." I stare at the gigantic imprint on the ground left by Gamabunta. "The toad left me."

I dropped drunk on the ground and snore a great deal. Well, I dropped on the ground after I had puked a few gallons of regurgitating matter.

* * *

><p>I woke up with a start. Ow, what a fucking headache I had. It pounded like miners with a zero pay had been promised a mountain of gold. As in, fucking hurt. Note to self, never, ever, drink again. <em>Ever! <em>

I looked around and saw my living room, on my couch. Whoever found me must know where I've been living for the past two months. Here's hoping it was Anko that found me.

I heard a knock on my door. Dammit, why did I have to have a visitor now? I got up to answer the door. The knocking, once again, turned into pounding. So, it was Anko at the door. I open it, and, as predicted, Anko was standing in front of me. This time, though, she didn't have a frown on her face. No, on the contrary, she had a wide grin. And not a malevolent, I noticed, not the one she usually had. The one that says, 'I'm going to butcher you and I'm going to like it!', you know? More of an 'I saw something shiny and I want it!' grin. I wonder why...

"The Chuunin Exams' final stage is coming along just fine, and I want to help train Naruto!" And then her grin turned malicious. Someone must have intrigued her. Without a doubt either me or Naruto. Chances are Naruto, though.

"The little squirt, Naruto, has some sweet tasting blood, Shinji. I want more of it." she chuckled, and I whimpered. What can I say? I'm a coward at heart. At least I admit it, yeah? "The _hard_ way." She takes out a kunai and licks it. Slowly.

Pause...

"Goddammit woman. You're going to be the death of me, I just know it." I say as I open the door for her. Anko merely giggles and enters my humble apartment.

"You know you like it, Shinji-kun." Oh ho! She used the '-kun' suffix! Kinky...

And after some hot, steamy pasta later, we both got to go to the hot springs to observe Naruto's meagre training, courtesy of Ebisu.

* * *

><p>And we did spot Ebisu first. Which was funny, because he was supposed to be an elite instructor of ninjas, trained many a candidate for the Hokage position. Yet he makes himself conspicuous. That totally goes against anything that ninja stands for. Then again, he could be lying when he said he was an elite instructor. He could easily pass as a low-chuunin level ninja, at least, high-chuunin at best.<p>

Just a second after he had spotted Ebisu, Naruto arrived. Well, more like plopped from the surface of the water, screaming in pain from the hot water. Both me and Anko chuckle at the sight. How hilarious to see someone scream in pain. Though it is kind of bad that it is Naruto, but alas, stuff happens all the time.

On some unknown signal, both me and Anko shunshin towards the training pair. Or more specifically, the torturer and the torturee. Or the trainer and the trainee. Whichever you prefer.

"You're having him use too little chakra, Ebisu-san." I say, startling the two. I smirk, while Anko, being Anko, intended to scare the crap out of Ebisu and Naruto, and smiled as malevolently as she could. Especially at Ebisu, seeing as he was biased towards Naruto's 'condition' with a certain red-furred gigantic fox being sealed inside him by his father.

"Who are you! And why are you judging my performance?" Ebisu shouts indignantly.

I stare at Ebisu without my smirk, and then at my girlfriend, "Did he just say what I think he said?"

"Yup!"

I stare some more at Ebisu. Then, after creeping him out a little, "Well, we can't have him thinking he will be the only one having a hand in Naruto's training, can we?"

"Nope!"

"Goddammit, Anko, stop using one-liners!"


	7. Training Naruto

"Wh-Who are you? And what are you doing here?" Ebisu cried out, confused over the two new arrivals. As in, me and Anko.

"I am Shinji Takuma. And this is a public spot, why shouldn't we be here?" I smirk. Ebisu grew steadily more agitated over mine and Anko's arrival.

"And what is _she_ doing here?" Ebisu threw a heated glare at Anko. Big mistake.

I react quickly, to make sure Anko wouldn't go to jail for 'unnecessary' violence. I cared for her, you know. I used shunshin to appear in front of Ebisu. With my fist planted firmly in his stomach. And with enough chakra running through my arm to make a mountain feel the strain to keep upright.

Ebisu flew off his feet, towards the sky. However, before I lost sight of him, I attached a chakra string to him, manipulating his descent so that he would land in the women's hot springs. Oh the agony...

Silence ensued. Even Naruto was silent.

"You didn't have to do that, Shinji. I'd be fine." Anko said. She walked towards me and put an arm around my shoulders. That calmed me down considerably. I had been visibly shaking with suppressed anger. I had, in my entire life, always suppressed anger, burying it deep inside me, making sure that it was always directed when I needed it. Usually, I'd just play off Ebisu's glare at Anko as inconvenient, but harmless. Usually. It was not the case this time.

I manage a smile towards Anko, who grins back at me, eyes closed and everything. Like everything would be alright again. Which it would, honestly. But burying your fist into someone's stomach, attacking someone, it just feels so... good. Ah, well. Never mind.

I turned towards Naruto, who, frankly speaking, looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. Which makes me wonder if the Naruto universe has cars...? Not necessary, Shinji! Don't think about such things now!

I scratched the back of my neck sheepishly, "Sorry about that, Uzumaki. I'm sort of not pleased when people treat Anko-chan unfairly..."

However, what I didn't notice, since I had my eyes closed and all, was the glint in Naruto's eyes when I apologized for my behaviour. I was surprised, however, when I heard a shout from Naruto. One that was, without a doubt, one of excitement. "That's it! You're a ninja, right? Right!"

I put my hands up in defence, but was interrupted by Anko, who slung her arms around my shoulders. "Yup! That's right, kid! This guy can kick so much ass I'd have to chain him up and tie him down just to control him!" she grins.

Kinky... Anyway, Naruto, being the foxy, innocent boy he was, asked, "How can you tie a ninja down?"

"You don't! Unless both parties are willing!" Anko said mischievously.

"Goddammit, Anko-chan! Stop corrupting kids' minds already!" I shout indignantly. Though I wouldn't complain if she did tie me down. As long as it was on a chair in front of a table with more of her delicious food. Mmm...

I'm scatter-brained, I know, I know.

Anyway, back to the real world, Shinji!

"What? You know you like it..." the woman said.

"Yes, I do, but that's not what we're here for, is it, now?" I turned towards Naruto, who had been looking back and forth between the two of us as if he was watching a tennis match. "Anyway, Uzumaki, you want to learn water-walking, right?"

"Yeah! Right, kid?" Anko pointed at Naruto, then the water, and then at Naruto again.

Naruto fist-bumped the air, and shouted, "Yeah!"

"Well, then. Let's get started..." I chuckled ominously. Oh, I had plans to get Naruto's chakra control perfect. Perfect indeed... Kukukukuku...

Naruto gulped when he saw me and Anko with malicious glints in our eyes.

* * *

><p>"No."<p>

"Please!"

"No. You can't take a break, Uzumaki. You can only run on the surface of those trees. Once you have been able to successfully fight on the trees for an hour, then you can take a break." I heard a multitude of simultaneous groans. Chuckling, I added, "If you succeed within three hours, I'll treat you to an hour of ramen."

"_Let's go, guys!_" "_Yeah!_"

I heard a poof, and got a memory from a Kage Bunshin. Apparently, it had been winning the fight against three of Naruto's clones. Damn, if Naruto can't beat me in taijutsu, then he is truly hopeless.

I looked around the clearing. I had hundreds of my own shadow clones up against hundreds, if not a thousand or two, of Naruto's shadow clones, all while tree-walking. Shadow clones are so useful! Already, Naruto's chakra control was developing. Sure, he has the chakra control of an academy student right now, but that alone is a great achievement. I just know that when Sasuke defects Konoha, and Naruto goes on that training trip with me, he will be giving even me a run for my money, what with his future chakra control, variety of the Rasengan, ninjutsu, just everything, really. It's going to be an exciting future.

Anko sat beside the real me, with her head on my shoulder and an arm around my waist. She nuzzled closer into the crook of my neck. She smiled brightly when I shuddered from her breath on my neck. It felt weirdly comforting, really. "How are ya holding up, Shinji?" Anko asked worriedly. Huh, not like her to be worried like that. Usually, when she does that, she has some kind of devious thoughts in her mind. Oh well. You know the expression, 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth'.

"I'm fine, thanks, Anko-chan. Ebisu without a doubt deserved it." I said seriously.

Since I had the Rinnegan, which I still hadn't been telling anyone at all, not even Anko, I was able to see through all of my clones' eyes. Which is a weird experience, but it wasn't as confusing as I thought it would be, to be honest. It did take me half an hour to get used to, though, but it was enough. Only vision was shared, but I was able to distinguish which perspective was from which clone, which helped a lot, to be honest.

What I saw from one of my clones was a tired Naruto. And since it was the real one, his clones would eventually also tire. I grinned, which Anko also noticed, and grinned too. "He getting tired yet?"

I looked down at Anko, the malicious grins still fixed upon our faces. "Yeah. Care to do something about that, Anko-chan?"

Anko's grin widened some more as she rose from her position on the bench. "Oh yeah." she took a deep breath in, "Hey, brat!"

This caught the attention of the real Naruto, but suspiciously, only the real one. The clones continued fighting with my own clones. "What, Anko-sensei?" Naruto shouted

"If you don't stop spacing out, I'll feed you to my snakes!" Anko answered.

"Yeah, as if you dare!"

"Sen'eijashu!"

"Gyah!" Oh the hilarity. Now he had to worry about both my clones and Anko's vicious snakes. Oh the humanity.

* * *

><p>I made a new discovery lately. Anko loves ramen as much as Naruto. And Naruto loves dango as much as Anko. And my wallet has emptied itself twice during my relationship with Anko. And both that dango store Anko frequented, along with Ichiraku's, just had a new source of massive income. Sometimes, I wish I was a billionaire, just to satisfy my needs as well.<p>

But hey, Anko cooks my food, too, so there aren't any complaints there. And she takes _special _care of me when I'm tired, so no complaints there.

Naruto's training in chakra control went phenomenally well. As good as Naruto's chakra control could, that is. He eventually learned to walk on water, too, courtesy of mine and Anko's _encouragement_.

* * *

><p>I sat upon the cliff opposite of the Hokage Mountain, relaxing with my head in Anko's lap. And damn, does it feel good, too, I must say. Having your head in a woman's lap, and looking up, watching a pretty woman's face contort into happiness and fondness every so often as she, too, looks into my eyes. How romantic, right? Yeah...<p>

Thing was, we were waiting for Naruto. We weren't expecting him to arrive in the next ten minutes, so we couldn't really get busy, anyway. Rawr...

Anyway, the reason why I had called for Naruto to come to the Hokage Mountain was because I wanted him to sign the Toad Contract. It would be life-saving in case I couldn't do anything to rescue him from a Sand Burial from Gaara. Just in case, and all. I also had to make his seal better, so that he would have easier access to the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra, and not lose any of his sanity, despite how awesome I think he looks like when he is at four tails and up.

I felt hands stroke my hair, making me close my hands and lean in to the touch and, somehow, apparently purr of approval. Or the closest thing a human who has no talent in imitating animal noises. I heard a cute giggle coming from Anko. I held my tongue, though. I knew that if I said that to her, she would without a shadow of a doubt feed me to her snakes. And I rather like my body as it is, thank you very much.

"Hey, Takuma-sensei, Anko-sensei!" I shot up immediately, red in the face. Oh god, I hope he won't blackmail Anko being soft, which she would then blame me, and then she would feed me to her snakes, and then-

"Hey, Shinji, you alright?" Anko raised an eyebrow

"Huh?" Stupid! Don't zone out! What happened to 'not caring what other people thought about your relationship with Anko? Sigh...

"You were spacin' out there for a second, Takuma-sensei! Are you okay?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"What? I mean, uh, yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." They stared at me. I begin to loudly cough into my hand, trying to hide my embarrassment, "Anyway, I have something for you. Something I think you will like it, seeing as your wallet looks like one of them."

"A frog? You got a frog for me? Awesome!" Naruto jumped into the air, fist-bumping it.

"No, no, it's a toad. Or more like, a Toad _Contract!"_ I chuckle. My words, however, caught Naruto's attention immediately.

"Contract? What's that?" he asked, closed eyes and all.

However, before Anko could interrupt me, I summoned a toad. A large toad. Not Gamabunta, mind you, seeing as I'd have to live down the embarrassment of when I was extremely drunk. Only a large enough toad to make an impression on Naruto, so that I could convince him to sign the contract. Then I would work on his seal, so that he doesn't have to ask for the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra. And only then will I make him summon Gamabunta. Then, and only then. After that, we will continue training Naruto's chakra control.

Naruto let out a loud, interested whoop. "Awesome! Do I get to do that when I sign the contract? Do I? Do I?"

"Yep! And this guy, despite being big, is not the boss of the Toads." I tap the summoned toad's head. "He's gigantic! The size of the Hokage Tower, easy!"

"Let me sign it! Now! Please!" Naruto shouts, excited to have two such amazing teachers. Oh, _zing, _no confidence issue there! Awesome thing to know.

Anyway, "Anko, care to explain the workings of the contract?" I ask the beautiful woman.

"Sure thing." she shunshins behind Naruto, cutting his cheek with a new kunai she has from one of her pockets in her large trench coat. And in the process, creeping both of us the hell out. "You see," she licks the blood, "You need to sign it first. That's obvious. But the ink has to be," she takes another lick of blood. Now why do I find the sight slightly arousing? Oh god... "Blood." she whispers into the very scared the crap out Naruto's ear, making him jump half a foot up in the air. She shunshins onto the motionless toad, clutching my arm tightly. Damn, despite having a total fetish for blood, she sure can figure out how to get out of it by being cute, doesn't she?

"Uh..." Naruto said stupidly, rubbing his already healed cheek. "I think I'll sign the contract. Yeah..."

I sigh. "Dammit, Anko!" I turn towards her, "Don't scare him that much!" I threw my hands up in defeat. "Honestly..." I looked towards Anko. Yep, I was right. She was grinning like a Cheshire cat. Stupid Cheshire cats and their grins...

I sigh once again. I take out the scroll from my white kimono, and throw it towards Naruto, who catches it out of the air flawlessly. He opened it up and saw my name, written in my blood. He bit his thumb hard enough to draw blood, and then he began to write. "U-zu-ma-ki Na-ru-to." then a bloody hand print.

Then a minute of silence.

"Uh, is something supposed to happen, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck, confused over the events. Or rather lack of.

"Yeah, now you just do these hand seals." Then I show him the correct series of hand seals to use the summoning jutsu. Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram, in that order. "And then, you just put as much chakra into it as you possibly can."

"Yes! I will, Takuma-sensei!" then he took to doing the hand seals, and he slammed his hand on the ground. Since he had some leftover blood from the writing he did on the seal, he could still use the summoning jutsu.

And in a puff of smoke appeared...

Gamakichi...

"Yo." he waved.

"Yo." I waved back.

Silence.

"I... I failed?" Naruto began to scream and tear out his hair in frustration. Already.

"No, kiddo, you didn't fail." Anko said.

"B-b-but I just summoned a small toad! A small one! Takuma-sensei summoned a big one!", it probably had enough of just being there for show, because after Naruto mentioned him, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. "And I summoned a small one! It's not fair!" Naruto screamed.

I slung an arm around Naruto's shoulders, "Size doesn't matter. It's how you use it that counts." I said just loud enough for Anko to also hear. Which she did, since she burst out laughing.

"Why is she laughing?" Naruto asked me, weirded out by Anko's weird behaviour.

I chuckle and ruffle Naruto's hair. "You'll understand when you're older, Naruto." I sighed. "When you're older..."

"Who's up for some ramen?" I yell out. Dammit, I shouldn't have said that. Now my wallet's going to be empty a third time.

* * *

><p>And empty it became. I heard slurping sounds from my left side. I sighed. Those two would really become the death of me. I just knew it, somehow.<p>

"Well, Naruto-brat," Anko asks Naruto, "Who are you up against in the final stage of the Chuunin examinations?"

Naruto's expression hardens, and becomes more and more determined. The Chuunin finals were, after all, within a week. "I'm going up against Neji Hyuuga, the last year's 'genius'," he spat out the word genius with enough malice to make the devil shiver in fear. Must be the Nine-Tails' influence, right? Right? Anyway, obviously, he despised Neji for the unnecessarily harsh beating he had given Hinata. He had to be stopped by all the Konoha Jounin there, too, so Neji was probably leaking some killing intent. And that's not good.

Anko spluttered some ramen broth out of her mouth, "Neji? As in Neji Hyuuga?" Anko shouted, drying her mouth. "Good luck, I say." she adds mockingly.

I frown at Anko, "Now now, Anko, we both know that Naruto _will _win against Hyuuga-san." I ruffled Naruto's hair, "Especially when we have been whipping him to tiptop shape!"

"Of course the squirt will win, Shinji! I'm just saying that he'll probably be beaten the hell out of, first!" Anko pointed her chopsticks at me, in a manner, strangely reminiscent of Naruto.

"I'm not a squirt, Anko-sensei!"

"In my books, you are, squirt!"

"Crazy lady!"

"Brat!"

Here we go...

* * *

><p>The finals were tomorrow. And before Naruto would fight against Neji and Gaara, I want him to get into Gamakichi's and Gamabunta's good books. Just in case my intervention has done more damage than I thought. So, in order to do that, I had once again called for Naruto to the top of the Hokage Mountain, without Anko, since she'd castrate me for what I was about to do.<p>

"What did you call me for this time, sensei?" Naruto had his fingers interlocked with each other behind the back of his head. "And where's Anko-sensei?"

"Anko-chan isn't here this time around, Uzumaki. She had some things to do. She's a Tokubetsu Jounin and all, you know?" I wave my hand around in a dismissal manner. "Anyway, I want to show you something."

"Sure thing, Takuma-sensei!" Naruto fist-bumped the air. He does that often, doesn't he?

"Lift up your shirt. I'm going to tinker with your seal, to make sure the fox doesn't do something it shouldn't do, okay?"

"Sure." Naruto responded, lifting up his shirt and channelled chakra to his stomach to show his seal.

I pulled out a scroll, some ink and a paintbrush, intending to replicate it for later modification. Now that I was close to the seal, I marvelled in its complexity. Its eight pointed edges weren't identical at all. Instead, they were very small symbols. That weren't necessarily kanji, I noted. The spiral in the middle was actually another series of complex symbols, all kanji, each after the other, each so small, and so tightly packed together, it looked like it was whole. In fact, the entire seal was like that.

But then again, what else should I expect from the greatest seal master of the Third Shinobi World War, Minato Namikaze? Here's hoping his son, Naruto Uzumaki, will become a great ninja...

Who am I kidding, of course he will. Under my guidance, he will rival Jiraya in no time flat! Here's hoping that that is true...

I made Naruto lay down, easier that way for both of us. I finished copying the complex seal work of the Fourth Hokage's Hakke Fuuin, the Eight Trigrams Seal, after half an hour or so. I was prepared to make the modifications necessary for making the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra easy to access for Naruto only.

Here's hoping it would work...

I finished the modification of the seal after three hours of painstakingly explaining to Naruto what I was doing in layman's terms, and him listening with, for once, rapt attention. It must have been interesting, because it did have something to do with the overgrown fox sealed inside his stomach.

What I did was put the chakra of the nine-tailed fox into the spiral itself, making it the thing your eyes, thus your instincts, would hone into first. Therefore, I separated the mind of the fox from the chakra, and put it into the bottom-right corner of the trigram seal. The reason for why the bottom right was because if you were right handed, which is probable, then you'd first focus on the top-right corner, then go down to bottom-left. So it was all instinctual. I also made sure that the nine-tailed fox's mind was also sealed with several different types of mind restraining seals. Which reminds me that I have to do that during the two and a half training years start. Putting mind restraining seals on Naruto. He is not used to the information overload from mass disabling of the Kage Bunshin yet.

Aaand... "Finished." I said, as I let out the last stroke on Naruto stomach.

"Finally! Can I put the shirt back on, sensei? It's getting uncomfortable!" Naruto added with a hint of exhaustion. Naruto had to channel a minimal amount chakra to his stomach constantly to show the seal, after all. It would be tiring to anyone after three hours.

"Yeah, sure. Put it back on." Naruto did just that.

Then I walked off to the edge of the cliff, but made sure to send a Kage Bunshin down the side, inconspicuously, in order to grab onto Naruto, should he fail to summon the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra. I motioned for Naruto to follow me. Which he did, like a lost puppy, actually.

"What is it, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto asked. He was curious for why his sensei, me, wanted him to follow him to the edge of the suspiciously dangerous, slippery and spiky cliff.

"I want you to summon as much of the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra as you can, and then summon. Do you understand?" I asked. Of course, his achievement of the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra would be instinctual, so it was best that I put him in a situation where his instincts would take over. Fear, in terms most would understand.

"Okay, sensei, but how will I do that?" he asked.

I grinned maliciously and took his arm. The action confused Naruto. Right up till I threw him off the cliff.

And scream from fright he did. And laugh my ass off I did. Damn was it funny...

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>There's only one thing I really have to say. I thank Zaralann for commenting and giving me good information on the Naruto series' fillers! ;D


	8. The Contract Of The Toads

So, I had thrown him off the cliff, on the opposite side of the Hokage Monument.

And it was funny as hell, to watch him scream with fear. Of course, I knew he would be able to summon Gamabunta in time to save his own hide, but that didn't retract any of the fun from it.

Then, after watching the cliff side with a few chuckles here and there, I saw, with my Kage Bunshin, that Naruto was reaching for his thumb. Good. He understood the purpose of this training. Well, more like assisted suicide or homicide, you decide, really.

He did the necessary hand seals for the summoning jutsu, and stretched out his hand into the air. Black and intricate symbols flew out of Naruto's palm, and, in a gigantic puff of non-toxic smoke, appeared...

Gamabunta.

And he crashed right on top of my shadow clone. Excellent...

"What- What happened? I was drinking sake, for christ's sake!" I heard Gamabunta yell. And I'm pretty sure everyone in Konoha could hear him. Then I heard something that could have been mistaken for the wind. Naruto was talking with Gamabunta, and eventually, Gamabunta replied, his booming voice carrying out to me, but it felt more like another person was standing next to me, talking loudly, instead of someone yelling out to the village.

"No, I won't do your bidding. Just because you summoned me doesn't mean I'm an emotionless husk, you stupid brat!" Now that got a good response from Naruto. I faintly heard Naruto yell something along the lines of 'Hey!' or 'How come?'. Either way, it wasn't really that important. What was important was that Naruto managed to summon the Toad Boss with the Nine-Tailed Fox's help.

Eventually, Gamabunta jumped up to the Hokage Monument, landing on it with a heavy thump. One, that would have blown me away, had I not decided to stick to the ground with chakra

And then Gamabunta announced to Naruto, "Alright, usually, I'd declare you unworthy, but since you're so young, I'll let you pass."

"Awesome! Thanks, Toad Boss!" Naruto yelled.

…

What just happened? Did- was Naruto just allowed to summon Gamabunta _without_ getting into a drinking match? Just because he's so young? _That's unfair! _Well, then again, life's unfair, so I guess I can live with it. For a few, that is. I don't know what few, but a few.

Speaking of which, I seemed to have zoned out there for a moment.

"I'm proud to say, Naruto, that you pass my current training!" I smile to Naruto.

He boisterously jumps around and screams out in happiness. "You hear that, Konoha? I'm finished with my training! I'll be Hokage before you know it, just you watch! Believe it!" he begins to fist-bump the air once again.

I chuckled. He can be so optimistic sometimes. But then again, with me holding him up through his sorrow, he'll definitely be able to concentrate more on training his chakra control, his Rasengan, everything. I'd be there to help him reach Kage level in no time flat. And not only me, I had already made plans for the long training trip. I was planning on making a stop on Takigakure and learn of their various, and deadly, poisons. I think that with Sasori's deadly poison out there, Takigakure will without a doubt have an antidote, to both his poison, and to their own poisons.

And maybe I could get a hand on their forbidden jutsu. Kakuzu was insanely strong. And mix his Threads Body, along with those hearts of his, with the Rinnegan and my level of chakra...

Well, you never know.

Anyway, so I ended up explaining that the Toads were from a place called Mount Myoboku, which excited Naruto to no end, for some reason. Probably because the summoning world fascinated him to such an extent that he became hyperactive. And now that I think about it, I might be fascinated by it as well. Is it in a separate dimension? If so, then couldn't you theoretically go back and forward in time? And if it's not in a separate dimension, where is it? Is it in Fire Country, or in another continent altogether? So many questions that can answered by the two Elder Sages, Shima and Fukasaku. Which reminds me, I have to get Naruto to learn Sage Mode as quickly as possible.

But if Naruto-

"Hey, sensei, why are you staring like that?" Naruto squinted his eyes at me.

"Huh?" I must have zoned out again. Dammit, I keep doing that! "Oh, sorry Naruto. W-What was that?" I scratch the back of my neck in red-faced embarrassment.

"I asked if we could go for some ramen! Please?" Naruto begged, slamming his hands together as if praising me. If he didn't already...

"Sure, I guess." Oh, how I would get to eat my words. Again. And again. And again.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for the food!" Naruto shouted and snapped his chopsticks. He began to eat vigorously, devouring the food as if it were his lifeline. And looking on his childhood, you'd think that he would be thinner, yes? Well, good thing the Ichiraku's-<p>

"Hey, Takuma-sensei, can you teach me something else?" Naruto snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Depends on what you want to learn. I can teach you Fire jutsu," I pointed on finger into the air, "Lightning jutsu," two fingers, "Earth jutsu," three fingers, "Water jutsu, my personal favourite," four fingers, "or Wind jutsu." and lastly, I put my hand on Naruto's head, ruffling his hair. "But first, we have to know which element of chakra you have. Looking at you, I'd bet you have a lightning affinity." I lied, of course. I knew he had an affinity for Wind. Good thing I knew some jutsu from each of the five elements, along with a few non-bloodline elements, from Wave Country's shinobi archive. They were really generous, and had recognized me from the very moment I had entered the library. They recognized me, because I had the Rinnegan undisguised. Though I was sure that that would be with its repercussions, I was also sure that I would handle the consequences.

Speaking of the Rinnegan, I thought it was time to reveal them to the current Hokage _only._

"What's an element, sensei?" Naruto asked. Honestly, what do they teach- Wait... Sabotage of the 'Nine-Tailed brat', without a doubt.

I thought my thoughts out quickly, and I managed to suppress a sigh of exasperation. "There are five elements, Water, Earth, Lightning, Fire and Wind. With each of these elements are the so called sub-elements. There is, for example, Boil, a mixture of Water and Fire, or Wood, a combination of Earth and Water. But in order to have access to them, you need to have a specific bloodline. Something you do not have, I know." Naruto pouted.

"Now now, no need to be let down. Those with bloodlines usually rely too much on them. Let's see... You know what a doujutsu is, right?"

"Yeah! It's those weird eyes the Uchiha clan has, right?" Naruto asked, hopeful that he, for once, was right in a question he asked someone who was his teacher, or mentor.

"Correct, Naruto, good. Let's take your example. Those weird eyes are called the Sharingan. It is able to see the chakra flow of a person, thus predict how to block an attack or exploit an opening to the fullest. It also has the ability to copy any non-bloodline jutsu they see. Their last ability is to see if others, and themselves, are under a genjutsu. It's a magnificent doujutsu. However, there are methods to counter each and every one of its abilities." Naruto listened with rapt attention, calmly putting his ramen bowl down on the counter he sat at.

"How do you counter that kind of abilities? If they can see where I'll be, then taijutsu won't work. If I use ninjutsu, they'll just copy and counter it. If I use genjutsu, they'll see through it. How do you counter such abilities, sensei?"

I grinned. Oh, how the mighty would fall! "With fuinjutsu, my dear student. With fuinjutsu."

Naruto stared wide-eyed at me. "How can seals have anything on it?" Naruto expected a revelatory answer. I expected that he would. I was sure that he would become a sealing genius, right up there with his father. Maybe he would even be able to recreate the Hiraishin jutsu. I haven't been able to make mine as fast. You see a streak of light-purple chakra going from one place to another, making it predictable where I would come from. If you had a doujutsu that could see chakra, that is. Which is to say the Byakugan, Sharingan and Rinnegan.

"Easy. You get behind them and slam a seal on them to seal away their eyes." I grinned again. How the mighty would fall indeed.

"How do you even get behind them, Takuma-sensei? They'll see where I'd be coming from." Naruto asked. Good question too. I was only be able to get behind a Sharingan wielder since I had my own version of the Hiraishin jutsu. And if I used a standard version of the shunshin, of course...

"That... That is a very good question, Uzumaki. You see, you simply have to be tougher than them. Better than them. Stronger than them, but most importantly, faster than them. Only then will you be able to truly defeat a Sharingan wielder. If you are quick, you are able to get behind them in time to slam that seal on them, and before they manage to rip it off, beat the crap out of them. That's how you do it."

Naruto did his best imitation of a fish stuck on land, which I must say, is a fairly good one. "Seals can do that, Takuma-sensei?"

I chuckled, "Oh yes, and so much more." I perked up, pointing a finger upwards, "Did you know that the reason the Fourth Hokage was so famous was because of a jutsu that used seals? It was called the Flying Thunder God jutsu, and it is yet to be rivalled by any other Seals Master!" I gesture with my hands in a grandiose manner. God, how pathetic I am. But then again, I have to get Naruto as interested as possible in fuinjutsu. The more, the better.

Which, for some odd reason or another, reminds me of Hinata. I have to make him aware of-

"Sensei, you're spacing out again!" Naruto panicked.

"Huh? Oh, right, right. Well, just know, everything's happening for a reason. Remember that, okay?" I asked seriously.

Naruto, however, did not adopt the same expression, and chose to simply perk up and yell, "Understood, sensei! I promise I'll learn the Fourth Hokage's jutsu! Believe it!"

* * *

><p>Why, oh why did I choose to invite Anko and Naruto to some dango the day later I'd never know. Probably because not only am I a coward at heart, but also a financial masochist? So many theories, so little time...<p>

I let out a sigh. "Hey, Shinji, what's wrong? You're seeming pretty down right now." Anko observed. How... Observant of her.

Yes, I did seem down, but I guess it's just the excitement of the final stage of the Chuunin Exams was finally getting to me. I have always had a funny way of showing excitement. No, not singular. Plural. Ways. I have always had funny _ways_ of showing my excitement. One of them being 'thoughtful'. Usually, when I seem thoughtful, I seem depressed, or down in the dumps, as someone of Naruto's intelligence would call it. I've never been able to shake that depressed state of mind out of my behaviour pattern, so I just dealt with it, and hoped others would, too.

"What, no, nothing is wrong, it's just..." I drawled out, indicating that my energy to keep myself awake was nearly up, "concern over Naruto, I guess." I have long since figured out that the easiest way to deal with problems would be head-on, despite my conflict-hating nature. After all, running away from a problem does not make it go away, does it now? Still, it's difficult for me to do not run away sometimes.

"For me?" Naruto squinted his eyes, resembling a fox. Funny, yes? But I did, however, notice a slight blush on Naruto's cheeks. Probably because he never really had anyone to concern for him. Well, except the Third Hokage and Iruka. But that's about it. Not even Sakura is ever concerned about Naruto at any point at all. Which is a shame. Team 7 really is pathetically un-teamlike. But then again, what would you expect, what with Sasuke being in it and all? Yes, I disliked Sasuke, but only because he was so deep into the path of the avenger.

Oh well, guess I'll have to go back to the real world. "Yes, Naruto. I'm worried that you will lose." I shook my head, "But alas, if you keep that way of thinking, then it will happen. So," I tapped Naruto's forehead, "Keep _knowing _that you will win! And with that _knowledge _you will win. If you keep thinking that you will succeed, then you will succeed! Got that, Naruto?" I grinned, knowing that, yes, Naruto got my words. He would definitely heed them, too. Well, hopefully.

And I was right. Naruto shot up from his seat, his fist in the air, and yelled, "I got it, Takuma-sensei! I won't lose to Neji, no matter what! Believe it!"

I chuckled at Naruto's antics. Anko, however, got an idea. She grinned impishly and pulled Naruto back down onto his seat, eliciting a slight grunt from Naruto. "Listen, if you really want to pull that stick out of the Hyuuga's ass, Shinji and I will have to get to teach you some good stuff!" she grinned maliciously. Oh dear, what in the world have I gotten into? Here's hoping she just merely wanted Naruto to learn elemental jutsu. Naruto did have the potential of potentials, so why not get him to utilize that potential to something?

Naruto stared questioningly at Anko, excited by the prospect of learning new things. "What, Anko-sensei! What?" Naruto practically bounced with joy in his seat.

"We are going to teach you," she whipped out some paper from one of her pockets, "Elemental jutsu!"

Naruto whooped out of sheer excitement, but then calmed down almost immediately. "Is that like Kakashi-sensei's Chidori he used once?" he asked.

Anko was wondering what the Chidori was, but luckily, I was there to fix that. "Well perceived, Naruto! It's a Lightning based jutsu. And as its name suggests, it sounds like the chirping of a thousand birds. It's mainly used as an assassination technique, though I don't see how, since it's so noisy."

"How do you know that, Shinji." Anko asked, suspicious of my plentiful knowledge of Kakashi and his original technique.

"Easy! The bingo book has lots of information on Kakashi." I lied calmly, but it was a little too quick for Anko's tastes. She frowned, but luckily enough for me, and dropped the matter.

"Wow! I want one of those!" Naruto pointed dramatically at me.

"I don't know where you can buy one, Naruto. I got mine off a bandit out in the wilds, so I wouldn't know." I shrug. What a lie. I'm a very, very good liar, apparently, since the two of them let the matter go.

"Aw..." Naruto drawled. Too bad I didn't know where to get one. Anko probably knew. Wait... Yeah, Anko probably knew!

"Hey, Anko, where _can_ you get a bingo book?" I asked Anko.

Anko grinned impishly then said, "I don't know."

Silence.

Great.

She didn't know where you could get a bingo book. Pathetic.

* * *

><p>As we later found out, it was in basically every book shop in Konoha that you could find one. How truly pathetic we were, yeah? But, the kicker was, they were all dated. The latest version was given to all Jounin and ANBU for free, and were sold to the individual book store at a later date, to generate slightly more income for the village.<p>

We ended up buying a bingo book for Naruto, but after dumping it at Naruto's apartment, we, as in me and Anko, dragged him to training ground seven. And there, we gave him some chakra paper.

"Here you go, squirt. Just channel some chakra into it, and then we'll see what element you have. If it crumbles, it's earth. Usually used for defence. If it gets wet, it's water. That one's useless, so here's hoping it's not it." "It is not!", I exclaimed, but Anko just continued as if I hadn't said anything, "If it gets burnt, it's fire. That one's typical here in Fire Country. If it gets all crumpled, it's lightning. That's good against heavy targets. If it gets cut, it's wind, though don't count on it. It's really rare to have that." Anko explained to the oblivious Naruto, who was listening with rapt attention. I had a knowing smirk on my face. I knew Naruto had the wind element. Good thing I could do a few wind elemental jutsu that I knew Naruto could learn in a few days.

And I laughed and clapped loudly at Anko's and Naruto's reaction when she saw Naruto's element.

We began to train Naruto in Wind Release, Wind Blade and Wind Release, Great Breakthrough. And to our great surprise, after a demonstration, and, like, three tries, Naruto had gotten it down to a point. He could perform the Great Breakthrough flawlessly, though the Wind Blade did seem to be more difficult for Naruto to do.

The forests cried that day for their fellow trees' destruction.

Finally, after only about three days of chakra control training, along with Wind training, the final stage of the Chuunin Exams arrived. And trust me, it would not be pretty.

* * *

><p>"So, squirt," Anko asked Naruto as she was slurping up ramen from the Ichiraku's, "Are you excited for your match against the Hyuuga?"<p>

Naruto got this so determined expression that he could scare away a cat. Probably why Tora is on the loose all the time, instead of just hiding away from its owner. "Oh yeah. With Takuma-sensei and Anko-sensei teaching me, I am going to beat him to a pulp!" Naruto shouted at the end of his sentence, fist-bumping the air.

I chuckled and clapped Naruto hard enough on his back to put him back on the chair. "Of course you will, Naruto. I have a feeling that despite it going to be a tough battle, you'll come out the victor. Hell, I'll bet, with our training and all, you'll even be able to beat the Chuunin Exams' finalist!" That would not going to happen, though. The Oto-Suna invasion would happen before that. Too bad, because now that Naruto knew a few tricks up his sleeve, I was sure he would even become Chuunin. Oh well, you can't have everything.

* * *

><p>I was walking towards the Hokage's office. It was night, but still two days and a night to the Chuunin Exams. I thought at that moment that it was high time that I told <em>someone <em>about my Rinnegan. And I knew that the best choice to tell would be the Hokage. I knocked on the Hokage's office's door. "Come in." I heard, after a few seconds of scrambling, and a shelf opening and shutting. I opened the door, and there sat the Hokage.

"To what do I owe this visit, Shinji-kun?" the Hokage asked, curious for the new arrival of me.

"Please turn on the security seals in the office, Hokage-sama. There is something I wish to disclose to you." The Hokage did as he was asked with little hesitation, forming a Ram seal with his hands. The walls glowed faintly from the activation of the seals.

"Now, what is it that you want to tell me, Shinji-kun?" the Hokage asked with sternness found in his voice, his hands folded in front of his mouth.

"Something that could be considered even an SS class secret." I sat on the chair opposite of the Hokage. Then I disabled my constant henge on my eyes, revealing my doujutsu. Fully dark-purple eyes, with a tiny pupil inside multiple rings going outwards.

I heard a loud gasp from the Hokage. "Yes. The holy eyes of the Sage of the Six Paths. The Rinnegan."

The Hokage stuttered in amazement. "H-How? That's impossible, the Rinnegan is said to- but-"

I decided interrupted the Hokage, but I just had to have a knowing smirk on my smug face. "Yes, yes, I know, I know. Bow in amazement of the ultimate eye. Yes, yes..." I said sarcastically, waving my hand around in a dismissing manner. I mean, if I said that for sure, I'm pretty sure the entirety of Konoha would bow before me. But then Anko would beat the crap out of me for not telling her. Dammit.

The Hokage schooled his expression appropriately. Well, after he had coughed once or twice into his clenched hand. "W-well, this is quite the development. How long have you had it?" he asked.

"Since I was born, I guess." I shrugged.

The Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, frowned, "But how come I have not heard of it, then? Wait. Are you the person who was claimed to have some kind of mystic eyes from the Water Country? I've heard many stories of how you defeated the tyrannical rule of the Fourth Mizukage."

I chuckled, "Well done, your intelligence gathering skills are up to par. Yes, I did defeat the Mizukage, and it was a short battle, but not really one I'm that much in favour for, you know?"

Sarutobi hummed, "Yes, I guess that is true. Now, why did you tell me about your Rinnegan? Why not, say, Anko Mitarashi, instead?"

I shuddered, truly scared for a moment or two, "She'd definitely kill me for not telling her.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Okay, so this one might seem a bit half-assed, but I am running on empty on imagination here. Help would be greatly appreciated, please?

Oh! And I thank Zaralann on reviewing, once again! Nya~!


	9. Training Naruto Some More

"Now, the reason for why I told you about the Rinnegan was, well..." I paused.

What was the reason for why I told Sarutobi about my doujutsu again?

Oh right!

"I'd like to know if that could impact my initiation into the military of Konoha. You are, after all," I gestured to the village behind Sarutobi's office, "the Hokage of Konoha."

The Hokage hummed. He mulled over the possibilities, probably. I mean, I was okay at genjutsu, I could beat the average Jounin at ninjutsu, and I excelled dramatically at fuinjutsu. Sure, I sucked at taijutsu big time, but I compensated with my other skills! And I was sure that with my initiation to the Konoha military would go smoothly anyway. Here's hoping I hadn't had to go through any tests, just demonstrations...

The Hokage thought over the things for a few more minutes, but eventually said, "Very well. I have decided that since you have the Rinnegan, and as much chakra as you have, I will rank you as a Special Jounin."

I sighed in relief. I did not want to be placed as a normal Jounin, since they receive lots of publicity. Believe it or not, you heard the most from run of the mill Jounin than a run of the mill Special Jounin. And the Special Jounin got the more interesting jobs anyway, so no complaints there, really. No complaints would be given even if I was placed as a Chuunin anyway, so it was a win-win situation. Besides, I sucked at taijutsu, so it was fair enough. And taijutsu is a very important part of being a ninja.

"Hm? Something wrong, Shinji-kun?" the Hokage asked me.

"What, no! No, nothing is wrong! In fact, everything is good! Now, where's my headband?" I asked, excited by the prospect of finally being aligned to the good of some awesome military. Because I had suffered from a minor form of depression during my life outside the Naruto universe I couldn't go to the military, something I wasn't really fond of to begin with, anyway. But, now that I am in the Naruto universe, I might as well, right? They didn't have to know I had been through a depression before. Besides, it was a minor one to begin with, no biggie at all.

The Hokage chuckled at my excitement. "Fortunately, I have a headband for just such an occasion right here in my desk." he said. That's funny, you'd almost think there was some kind of divine intervention there. But no, it was nothing but a coincidence. The Hokage opened a shelf to reveal many coloured headbands. There were black, blue, white, grey, heck, even pink. "Which colour would you like your forehead protector to be, Shinji-kun?"

"White, please."

He gave me a white one, and I tied it around my neck. Yes, I know it is a _forehead_ protector, but I just don't like having stuff on my forehead. Unlike Naruto, who runs around and screams about his alignment with Konoha. And now that I was an official ninja of Konoha, I could get some C rank missions to perform. Hopefully also A ranked ones. Just to add some excitement, yeah?

"Congratulations on your ninjaship, Shinji-kun. I hope you will have a pleasant career."

* * *

><p>After my initiation into the military, I had decided to treat Naruto and Anko for ramen as a celebration. My wallet was once again emptied of all contents.<p>

"Congrats, Shinji!" Anko said loudly, clapping on my back hard, and since I was slurping up the broth of the first bowl of ramen I had, well... you can guess the results.

"Yeah, Takuma-sensei! Who knew you'd also become a shinobi! And of Konoha, too! Just like me!" Naruto also clapped my back hard. Like, really hard. So hard, that if I hadn't applied a little bit of my monstrous amounts of chakra onto my back, it would have been hurting bad. Good thing Mei's training made chakra hardening my bones instinctive.

"Yeah, thanks. Both of you." I chuckled, scratching the back of my neck. "So, looking behind my initiation, how about your match with the Hyuuga? With our training, you will without a doubt beat the crap out of him!" I ended my sentence by balling my hand into a fist, fist-bumping the air, reminiscent of Naruto's fist-bumping.

Naruto, too, fist-bumped the air. He yelled out, "Yeah, I'll beat him down bad! That's a promise, Takuma-sensei!"

"Good, keep that attitude, brat. You'll need it!" Anko encouraged.

We continued eating, with both me and Anko encouraging Naruto, riling him up for the battle. It was important to raise his morale, and giving him tactics would without a doubt help him. I didn't suggest burying down the ground, the way Naruto would originally beat Neji. However, since Anko and I had been training him hard, he wouldn't really need to bury his way below Neji anyway. But then again, I would assist Naruto in my own mischievous way anyhow.

I spotted something out of the corner of my eye. I looked towards it, and what do you know, there I spotted Hinata. That was strange, though. Why would Hinata stalk Naruto even now? At that hour, shouldn't someone of her status be either training or listening to their father berating them meaninglessly? Didn't matter, I said mentally to myself.

I smirked and leaned down to Naruto's ear. Naruto noted my meaning and leaned in himself. "Seems like you have a stalker, Naruto." I told him secretively, but loud enough that Anko could hear as well. She hummed slightly and leaned backwards enough to see what was outside the stall.

I, however, knew where Hinata was, and decided to silently shunshin behind her. I grinned and immediately wrapped my arms around her waist, lifting her up in the air. Hinata squeaked and began fighting back. I, though, was much stronger than her. And add chakra into the mix, and I would without a doubt defeat her, should it come to that. I had no intention of harming her anyway, so I decided to walk towards the Ichiraku Ramen Stand. "See, Anko? Naruto has a cute stalker! How lucky of him!" I said loudly. I grinned at Anko, who recognized the girl who was continuously squirming, trying to get out of my arms, and she grinned back at me.

"That's Hinata Hyuuga? She's a stalker! Who knew?" Anko said sarcastically. Of course she knew about Hinata's affections towards our favourite blonde protagonist, anyone more observant than him would know about it. Hinata squealed, "P-Please! P-please l-let me g-go!"

I laughed, "Alright, alright." I put her down. Hinata was blushing so much she resembled a tomato so much that if the situation wasn't hilarious I'd be worried.

Oh yeah!

That just reminded me of my mission to make Hinata's affections to Naruto clear to him! Time to initiate Operation Affections! You know, operations, since getting Naruto to realize something obvious is a complicated operation in and of itself.

Hinata desperately looked around for an escape, but her eyes landed on Naruto, who had been strangely quiet in all the time for some reason. Her blush probably invented new shades of red, as much as she had been blushing. Next thing you know, there would be another red paint on sale, labelled 'Hinata Red' or something!

"Eh? Is something wrong, Hinata? You're all red. Are you sick?" Naruto asked, concern written all over his face. He stood up from the stool to put his hand on her forehead. And he did. And when he did, well...

Hinata fainted.

Naruto began to shout and yell in concern for Hinata's well-being.

And Anko and I just laughed our lungs out, clutching our sides in pain.

After a while, and after reassuring Naruto that nothing was wrong with Hinata, Hinata woke back up. "I had a nice dream. I dreamt Naruto was close to me and... And..."

And she spotted Naruto again.

And she blushed.

Heavily.

But thankfully, she didn't faint this time, she just stammered out, "N-N-N-N-Naruto-kun?"

I took pity on Hinata, and clapped Naruto on his shoulder. He looked curiously at me, asking me if something was wrong with Hinata. He was, after all, concerned for her health. And blushing and fainting as much as Hinata does cannot be healthy at all.

I answer Naruto, "Nope, nothing is wrong with her at all. No, in fact, everything but one thing is alright!" I grinned.

"What's wrong?"

I uncharacteristically giggle, covering my mouth with a hand, "First, repeat after me," Naruto nodded. Good, my devious plan will be set in motion! "'Hinata likes...'" Naruto repeats after me, "Hinata likes..." and by then, Hinata realized what I was doing, and promptly began to look for another exit that wasn't through me or Anko. Which didn't exist unless she made one. Her blush was even so heavy that it probably had so many shades of red I had ever seen in one place. "Then, point at yourself," Naruto did so. "And then," I grab onto Naruto's head, forcing him to look down. "_Look down._"

Naruto stared at his hand a few minutes. Anko, Hinata and I all stared at him in silence. I mean, really. It would take a complete-

"I don't get it."

And I promptly face-vaulted, Anko laughed her lungs out and Hinata fainted out of Naruto's sheer stupidity. Well, I'd like to think she did.

I slap Naruto on the back of his head. "Idiot. Hinata likes _you_!"

Naruto finally got it. Thank goodness Hinata was unconscious, or I would have forced the two to kiss and make up for lost time.

"Oh..." Naruto scratched the back of his neck. Of course he would be uncomfortable! What an idiot I was! He wasn't familiar with the love of another! How could I forget such an important thing! That's probably why Kishimoto-sama didn't do anything about Naruto and Hinata until late in Shippuden. Naruto was unfamiliar with being on the receiving end of platonic love! And even then it was more than likely just fan service.

I sighed. To quote a very intelligent philosopher, "Troublesome."

* * *

><p>Me and Anko began to drag Naruto back to his apartment. After we had delivered her back to the Hyuuga compound. What idiots they are. They have sticks so far up their asses they don't even know how to <em>not <em>punish the sweet lovable little girl. What moronic individuals they are.

Thankfully I made Naruto promise to improve on his relationship with Hinata. I also apologized to Naruto, but he simply brushed it off as incidental, for some reason or other.

The rest of the day was absolutely fine, really. Anko and I... relaxed a little after the event, with some hot sauce and delicious spaghetti. Yum, I say!

* * *

><p>The Chuunin exams were up now. I had already arrived at the booth for the Hokage and the Kazekage. It was decided that I would be the Hokage's bodyguard. Not because of rank, there were many a Jounin to choose from there, but because of my knowledge of the invasion. Thankfully, the Hokage had put a few more ANBU than in canon. Instead of eight ANBU, he had put twenty ANBU and two ANBU captains. I was sure that Kakashi would be extremely suspicious with the amount of ANBU present. Usually events such as the Chuunin exams, there would be one ANBU at least, but eight at most. Now there were twenty, with three captains.<p>

I whispered to the Hokage, "Sasuke hasn't arrived yet. It is as I predicted.". The Hokage nodded in response.

I looked over to the Kazekage chair. It was empty. The supposed Kazekage hadn't arrived yet. And when he did, I'd have to be on constant alert for any different actions. I only knew that a smoke bomb would be activated, and then the Sound Four would appear to create an impenetrable barrier that would put anything that touches it aflame. That I knew. But it didn't cover summoned things. That was good. Or at least good for me and my affiliates. And that was what was important.

I heard footsteps approach. I looked over to see Orochimaru dressed as the Kazekage along with his bodyguards. One of them had creepy make up, strangely reminiscent of the Joker while the other was a burly tall guy. Both had a Jounin vest on, each sized specifically for them.

"Ah! Look who has arrived! Kazekage-dono!" the Hokage exclaimed lightly, but politely. He held off a frown, adopting a politely pleasant expression, something he without a doubt was wont to do.

The fake Kazekage sat down, his two bodyguards right behind the chair. "You must be tired from the trip!" the Hokage said to Orochimaru.

I merely let out a quiet sigh and returned to a stone face expression towards the arena below. Something I had been good at since my youth. I remember this one time when I was in grade school. Bullies always avoided me since I had such a cold face. It unnerved them, they said. Heck, they even went as far as to go crying to the teachers with it. Of course, it were crocodile tears, otherwise I would be in real big trouble.

"Not at all," the Kazekage said, turning his head to look at the Kazekage, "I am glad that the stage is in Konoha." Oh, I'm sure you are, Orochimaru. I just wanted to trap all of them inside a Water Prison jutsu and be done with it! I had the Rinnegan, I could easily just kill them! I even had monstrous amounts of chakra, probably thanks to the Rinnegan! I thought it was important enough for the Hokage to know. At least until there is a pause in all the action.

Wait a minute.

The Rinnegan! It has multiple abilities! I remember Human Path's ability to separate souls from their bodies! All I had to do was to lay a hand on their head and bam! Instant death! Maybe I could do that! That is something for the Hokage to know!

"It is not tiring to come to Konoha from Suna at all. But for one such as you," he gestured slightly at Sarutobi, "It would be." Oh no he didn't! "You should hurry up and choose a Fifth Hokage soon." Oh hell no! That was very rude, Orochimaru! I don't care if you're a Kage or not, no one disses my boss and gets away with it! Especially not when I like said boss! And that's, like, _super _rare! As in, rare for me to like my bosses, that is.

Though the Hokage merely began laughing, "That won't be necessary at all," Sarutobi lifted himself up from his chair, "I think I will be in this job for the next five years." And here's hoping you won't choose me for the job. I would have to find a polite way of saying no, and I hate that, saying no, that is.

The aged Hokage took a few steps forward, bringing him to the railing. He turned his head towards the Kazekage, "Well then. Let's begin this." the Hokage said. He turned back to the audience, the ones who came to most probably watch the match between the 'Last Uchiha' and the deadliest Genin Suna would ever produce. Gaara and Sasuke Uchiha. What an over-hyped match, I think. I mean, sure, Sasuke was skilled, but he should not be the top Genin. If he was the top Genin of Konoha, then the future of Konoha looks bleak. Very, _very_ bleak.

The Hokage spread his arms wide, as if to welcome everyone with open arms and a big smile. Huh, next thing you know, he will have a glint in his eyes and a beard that would reach his belt. And don't forget a top-hat. That would be mandatory. "Ladies and gentlemen! Thank you for coming to the Village Hidden In The Leafs' Chuunin Selection Exams!" he lowered his arms down, folding his hand behind his back, "We will now begin the main matches with the eight who had passed the preliminaries. Please enjoy these fights!"

And the crowd went wild.

Orochimaru, still under the guise as Kazekage, raised his head, "If there are supposed to be eight, there appears to be one missing." he noted. How _very_ perceptive of you, Orochimaru...

The Hokage merely hummed in response.

And the battle between Neji Hyuuga and Uzumaki Naruto began.

I added extra chakra to my disguised Rinnegan, enhancing my eyesight to the point where I could see what was going on. I had learned that you could also increase your hearing and just about any of the five senses if you added a fixed amount of chakra from Mei's training. Bless her soul, really.

Apparently, Naruto had taken good on mine and Anko's advice. He utilized the Wind Blade almost like a professional. His offensive use of the Kage Bunshin was near flawless. At least in the eyes of a common beholder. Naruto almost danced around, his hand covered in Wind chakra as he continuously tried to hit Neji with it, strafing him once, twice... no, three times. And Naruto successfully nicked Neji once, right on his chin.

But that was not to say Naruto didn't receive a beating, either. Neji was claimed as the previous year's genius, and within reason, as well. He managed to manoeuvre all of Naruto's shadow clones around him, using their own momentum against them. He had went on the offensive every now and then, using Naruto's Wind chakra as an indicator as to who was the original.

The two of them seemingly danced around each other, until finally, the real Naruto was hit by a Gentle Fist style hit. He hit a chakra pressure point, sending Naruto skidding across the ground. But Naruto yet again by sticking to the ground with chakra, making only his feet skid across the ground.

Neji stared wide-eyed at Naruto's abilities. After all, how could the _drop-out _of this year's students be able to stand up to the last year's _genius_? I added some chakra to my ears, to hear the Chuunin examiners talking to each other. Thanks to the concentration training I had received in Water Country I was able to concentrate on their voices.

And what they said truly surprised me.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Okay, so there's something I'd like to say. In chapter 7, I think, there is a mistake. Zaralann notified me about it. I said "tomorrow" the Chuunin exams would happen, but later I pulled out 4 extra days or so. That is not an unannounced flashback, it is an honest mistake. I knew I had forgotten something, and it was that. Again, it was an honest mistake, a mistake I hope you can ignore...


	10. The Chuunin Finals

The Chuunin examiners, Kotetsu and Izumo, said about the battle something that surprised me to the bones, "I think that the Uzumaki deserves the Chuunin status, he does seem to be having a good use of the Kage Bunshin, along with Chuunin level techniques. Kage Bunshin is a Jounin level technique, after all. And making that many shadow clones in one go. That indicates his chakra being enormous." Not asenormous as mine, though, but still, I see his point. Naruto has a chakra amount that would definitely make a regular Jounin jealous.

"Yeah, and that's not even mentioning the Hyuuga. They both deserve the position." How quaint. I managed to get Naruto become a Chuunin! And still maintain the crucial and fragile balance within the time-line! Well, sort of. Naruto becoming Chuunin means that Shippuden will become changed, drastically. Hopefully for the better.

Naruto began using Wind Release, Great Breakthrough at Neji, forcing him to use Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven, or in shorter terms, Rotation, to defend himself. After a while, Naruto and Neji began to tire from using as much chakra as they were using. Eventually Naruto began to use shadow clones again, opting to go close combat with him. Mainly to distract him. After Neji had dispelled all the clones, he began to talk.

And guess what he began talking about. That's right, he began talking about his clan's demise. The Hyuuga family's situation was a very weird one, in my honest opinion. On one hand, you have the Main family, and on the other, the Branch family. Why in the world split the family? What purpose does it solve? Why increase the already massive ego of the Hyuuga by separating it into twin branches? Was it because there were too many people? I call bull, that cannot be true. The Inuzuka clan, as dog-worshipping as they are, are a big clan! I should know, I had spotted a lot of people with those red markings on their cheeks as I was traversing through the town during my stay here in Konoha. Anyway, in my honest opinion, there is no need for the Hyuuga clan's Cursed Seal at all. I find it a waste of valuable effort, manpower and chakra to put it on every Branch family member's forehead. And theoretically, it could easily be put on the stomach than their forehead-

And I had zoned out of the rest of the match.

I noted that Naruto still barely won against Neji, but this time used the shadow clones as a distraction while he buried himself downwards to punch Neji in the jaw. I knew this, because Naruto stood above a fallen Neji with a hole behind him. Naruto looked up to the Kage booth. He noticed me, and began cheering wildly. I simply grinned and gave him a thumbs-up! He thoroughly deserved the victory, along with the Chuunin position, I thought. With the knowledge of one C-rank jutsu, the Great Breakthrough, and one A-rank, Wind Blade, and the future knowledge of yet another A-rank jutsu, the Rasengan, he would without a shadow of a doubt deserve at least Chuunin status.

I zoned out once again past the announcement that Sasuke's match with Gaara being postponed after some encouragement from the Kazekage.

Next match was against Temari and Shikamaru Nara. It went as it went in canon. I broke off the link of chakra I had sent to my ears and eyes, instead focusing on the railing. The railing was orange. A delectable colour of orange. In fact, it was-

"Pay attention, Shinji-kun. You wouldn't want to lose track, now, do you?" the elderly Hokage chuckled. Dammit, when I really want to zone out, I'm not allowed to! Dammit all to somewhere unmentionable! A bull's absolute excrement! No, now that was just downright disgusting, I am sorry...

I manage to give off a weak smile and start focusing on-

The already finished battle. Shikamaru had resigned, just as predicted. I remembered telling Shikaku of his son's resignation, and frankly speaking, it did piss the lazy father off, but he came to understand his son's decision. Now, I personally would be pissed off, but I am a person who can hold a grudge. It's just that it takes a lot for me to create a grudge, if you get what I mean.

Next match was Gaara versus the 'Last Uchiha', Sasuke Uchiha. Again, the crowd murmured their confusion, and I swear I heard Naruto yell something about Sasuke's whereabouts.

And just like in canon, there was a swirl of leaves in the middle of the arena, showcasing both Sasuke and his teacher, Kakashi. Standing there, looking all cool-like. Undeservedly so, too, in my honest opinion. I mean, really now, just because they are skilled, they shouldn't be cherished as the pinnacle of humanity. Well, that is luckily just a few people's opinion. Mostly fan-_girls_, too. Lucky me, lucky me...

Unsurprisingly the crowd burst into cheers. Wild cheers. Hell, I could hear a few squeals of 'Sasuke-sama!' here and there. I channelled some chakra through my eyes, enhancing my eyesight comparable to that of an owl or an eagle, and sure enough, there was Sasuke smirking his trademark smug smirk. Damn him, I don't see what the fan-girls see in him at all. Oh well, different people different tastes.

And then, as both the Hokage and I noticed, two of one of the Feudal Lords' bodyguards went to the booth of which the contestants were inhabiting. They did not come back. Just as I had predicted, and had told Sarutobi.

Then Gaara appeared from the hole in the wall. Well, more like the stairwell. And he had this crazed grin on his face that could scare most people shit-less. And that included me, just so you know. Well, not shit-less, but close enough. Though the only reaction most people would get from me was a clenching of the jaw, and maybe a widening of the eyes, perhaps also a short, inaudible gasp.

Slowly, but surely, Gaara's wicked grin faded off to obscurity. Gaara stepped into position, perhaps about three metres away from the doomed Uchiha.

The proctor said a few words of which I heard none of. And when he threw his hand down, Sasuke immediately jumped back an inhuman distance backwards. As in, he jumped maybe three or four metres backwards. Not that much in shinobi standards, that's for sure.

Gaara simply stood still, watching Sasuke with a wary eye, ready to kill him at a moment's notice.

Sasuke charged, aaaand-

I zoned out. Again. I knew how the fight would end. It would end with Gaara going insane and the Invasion on Konoha would start prematurely because of it. So, in order to occupy myself, I started people-watching. It's really simple, actually. You watch people and then you imagine what they would say or something. I looked towards Kakashi, still channelling chakra to my eyes. Once again, it enhanced my eyesight considerably. Kakashi was looking around suspiciously towards the many ANBU guards, and I swear I saw him raise an eyebrow in surprise. ANBU are, after all, the elite of the elite. Or so they say. I still think the ANBU are severely underestimated-

Oh, and there jumped Sasuke up the walls. He prepared the legendary Chidori. Once again, I heard squeals of 'Sasuke-sama!' or something weird like that. Honestly, girls, they can be so confusing sometimes. But then again, boys are confusing for girls as well, so I can't really say anything there.

Monkey, Dragon, Rat, Bird, Ox, Snake, Dog, Tiger, and at last, Monkey. What a long sequence of hand seals! Just like the Water Dragon Bullet! Though the Water Dragon Bullet has about 44 required hand seals, much more than the puny Lightning jutsu. The Second Hokage was specialized in Water jutsu, and his way of shortening the required hand seals was ingenious. Not the shortening of the hand seals itself, but rather the way he did it. Discussion for another time, I know, I know.

Then, after Sasuke finished the sequence of hand seals, he began charging towards Gaara, who had surrounded himself with a dome of sand. The reason for why Sasuke had charged the Chidori in the first place. I saw an eye made of sand floating in the air just outside the dome of sand, allowing Gaara to view the events happening outside his 'ultimate defence'.

And then Sasuke neared the dome at breakneck speeds, his left hand crackling with lightning.

And his hand, covered with Lightning chakra, penetrated Gaara's ultimate defence, much to the shock of Gaara's siblings, Temari and Kankuro.

And Gaara screamed in pain and the sight of his own blood.

The Hokage and I tensed up at both the severe intensity of the killing intent flooding from Gaara's form, and in expectation from the incoming smoke bomb from one, or perhaps both, of the 'Kazekage''s bodyguards.

We all saw the sand arm coming from the dome of near-impenetrable sand. The sand arm that would hunt our dreams and nightmares for the rest of our lives, had we been normal people. It was, just as I predicted, covered in blue markings, along with being adorned with black claws, tearing up Sasuke's arm, making him bleed slightly.

And then clown-faced one of the Kazekage's bodyguards reached into his pocket, fishing for what both I and the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, noticed was a smoke bomb. And he promptly threw it down, making the entire booth be swamped in dark grey smoke.

We, as in the Hokage and I, immediately jump to the roof. The bodyguards followed, since I, too, had jumped up to support my leader.

At the same time, three gigantic snakes with red scarves around their necks broke through Konoha's great wall, allowing Suna and Oto forces to invade the unknowing village.

Both the bodyguards split into two, equalling four parts in total. Each part jumped to a corner. And they finally took their time to take off the blasted disguise. They were the Sound Four, Kidomaru, Sakon and the sleeping Ukon, Tayuya and last but definitely not least, Jirobo. They hastily erected a barrier, but not before one of the ANBU captains managed to get inside the barrier. I noted that his mask resembled a Turtle of some sort. However, just like in the original version of Naruto, one ANBU was stupid enough to try and see if the barrier was flammable. Which it was, funny enough. Let that be a lesson for you, unnamed ANBU. Don't play with things you know absolutely nothing about.

So, here I stood, along with the Hokage and an ANBU captain. The odds would be prominently better, now that the Third Hokage had back-up.

I immediately move the the Hokage's side, as did Turtle. "So, how has age been treating you... Sarutobi-sensei?" the 'Kazekage' lifted his hat slightly, showing his maddened eyes, befitting of the vile and wretched snake Orochimaru truly is.

"Quite well, I would say, Kazekage." the Hokage took off his robes with a flourish, showing his battle-armour beneath them. He was prepared for such an occasion, just like in canon. "Or should I say, Orochimaru?"

Orochimaru chuckled. He tore off his mask and threw his uniform away, making it collide with the barrier, effectively burning it. He was truly a scary human being. Or not. As in human. Hell, I might think he is a snake who has taken on human form. And seeing as people can transform into inanimate things and summon gigantic slugs and toads, it wouldn't be impossible for some animal to gain the ability to talk and grow into a human form. Something like an experiment, yes?

Meanwhile, Turtle shouted orders to the rest of the ANBU. "We will handle it from this end! Go help the Jounin with their battles! Now!" and immediately the rest of the ANBU shot off like thunder, towards the rest of the Jounin to help. And they would definitely be a great help, that was for damn sure. They were, after all, ANBU.

"I am curious, Sarutobi-sensei. How did you know it was me?" the snake Sannin asked, licking a kunai he had fished from one of the pockets of his robes. Sure, he was attempting to creep us out, but he would never succeed! Well, at least not on the Hokage or Turtle. Me, though? I was practically shivering in my pants! Jesus christ, he is frightening! And despite all my chakra and Rinnegan and whatnot, I still couldn't face the killing intent! I swear I saw myself being decapitated! Well, after I had been stabbed multiple times, being bitten by Orochimaru's poisonous snakes and what ever you can think of! Fuck, it was scary as hell! And hell is as scary as it gets!

Though outside, even if I was shaking slightly from the killing intent, I tried to neutralize killing intent in the air with my own. And lo and behold, it worked. Apparently killing intent is directly proportional to how much chakra you have. Sort of like energy and power. You can't have lots of energy if you don't have lots of power to back it up. If you know what I mean.

In fact, in worked so well that Orochimaru almost shivered from it. It wasn't my intention, but hey, when will I say no to an advantage.

Orochimaru chuckled again, despite the sweat on his brow. "My my, eager to kill me, are you?"

I respond, grinning madly, wanting to scare the snake Sannin slightly more. "Of course, you snake pedo. I want to kill you so badly it almost hurts!"

Orochimaru chuckled once more, before standing up straight. Suddenly, he held a strange smile on his face, like he knew something incriminating to me. Me, specifically. In short, it scared me. "Yes... Yes, you would do, then."

"Do what?" I asked. I was hesitant to know what it was that he wanted, but alas, I was curious, and despite knowing that curiosity killed the cat, I am no cat. I knew that. Besides, all I had to do to kill him was to Bansho Tennin his ass and touch his head!

Now there's a plan...

But no, we had to fake Hiruzen's death. We had to, so no Soul Separation, Shinji! I would have none of it!

"You would definitely do. Your chakra, it's so," Orochimaru inched forward slightly, a mad grin on his face, "very, potent..." he hissed.

"What the fuck are you talking about, you old fart!" I say. I mean, he is, what, fifty years old? At least! Oh wait...

I might have insulted the Hokage!

I turned towards the Hokage, "No offence, Hokage-sama..." I said apologetically.

"None taken." the Hokage smiled.

Wait a minute...

Now I think I know what Orochimaru meant by me 'doing'.

He wants me! No, not like that! He wants my body! No, not like that either! Pervert! He wants my body, in the literal sense. He wants to switch our minds, become me, while still retaining himself. He wants to use his resurrection technique on me!

Oh hell no!

I decided to reflect my thoughts, pointing at myself, "Oh hell no, you pervert! I will not become a host for your body! Bansho Tennin!" I stretch my hand towards him. I was imagining him flying towards me, a string of chakra between my hand and his head. And what do you know, he flew towards me head-first.

And I touched his head.

I did not let go, though. I decided to reveal my disguised Rinnegan eyes to him. I disabled my henge on my eyes, and showed them to him.

He gasped, "I-impossible!" he stared wide-eyed at me.

"Yes," I hissed, strangely reminiscent of the same snakey person I was holding. "Witness the true power of the fabled Rinnegan. These eyes will be your demise!" I said, as I almost threw my hands off of him. Almost. Something stopped me, though. A hand. Now why would someone stop me from killing the snake bastard?

"That is not necessary, Shinji-kun." the wizened Hokage said.

…

"Right, sorry." I took my hand off of Orochimaru without extracting his soul. Orochimaru was in too much shock to say anything. After all, it was the same pair of eyes that his former leader had.

"Shinra Tensei!" I said. My words made both Turtle and the Hokage wonder what that jutsu was.

And their faces when they saw what effect it had was hilarious!

I thought it was high time for the snake Sannin to reveal his 'trump card'. Not so much of a trump card when you know what it is, is it?

"Well, Orochimaru? Don't you have anything to show us? Impure World Resurrection, perhaps?" I taunted, making a rude hand gesture at him. Yes, that is correct, I gave him...

The 'finger'!

Orochimaru widened his eyes at the prospect of his enemies knowing what his trump card was. But then he narrowed his eyes. He probably thought someone was a snitch. Someone talking behind his back. Orochimaru wouldn't like that one bit, that was for sure.

Orochimaru went through the necessary hand seals in a blur. Hell, it was so fast I almost couldn't catch it. Tiger, Snake, Dog and Dragon, then he clapped his hands, his hair billowing in an unseen and unfelt wind.

"Summoning, Impure World Resurrection!" Orochimaru roared out.

Two coffins rose up quickly, with a third coming in. I wasn't worried, there was no way it would raise up.

The Hokage didn't know that, though. I had forgotten to tell him that the Fourth would be resurrected too, so he immediately clapped his hands together into the Snake hand seal. He managed to suppress the final coffin.

The coffin opened to reveal the Second Hokage and the First Hokage. Both in their blue and red armour, respectively.

"You've grown old, Saru." the Second Hokage said to Sarutobi. He, as in the current Hokage, the Third, looked down, saddened to see such a desecration of his former teachers.

"Indeed you have, Sarutobi." the First said. He looked around and spotted Orochimaru. "Aren't you his student? I apologize, I forgot your name."

Orochimaru chuckled, something I assume he does very often. "Oh, that is not necessary, you old coot." Orochimaru produced two red-tagged kunai and plunged into the heads of the First and Second.

After Orochimaru put the tagged kunai into the heads of the two Hokage they slipped into a combat stance immediately.

"Let's get this show on the road!" I said to no one in particular, us three, Turtle, Third and me slipping into a combat stance as well.

Now it's time to shine!

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I apologize beforehand. I might not update as quickly as before. The cause of that is simple, really. I have lost some interest in writing. However, do not think for a second that I will abandon it! For I will not, or else my username is not HTM!


	11. The Death Of A Hokage

My combat stance was sloppy, I noted. So when the Second Hokage closed up towards me, I immediately jumped backwards, using chakra to enhance my jump. I took special care to note that I did not hit the barrier that the Sound Four had created. Wouldn't want to burst into flames, now, would I? With that in mind, I quickly added chakra to my bones, strengthening them to the point where they were almost diamonds. Wouldn't want broken bones now, do we?

The Second closed in and charged a Water jutsu. I noted that despite he had an ingenious way of shortening the necessary hand seals required for a Water jutsu – the Water jutsu had an unusually high amount of necessary hand seals for some reason – he still had some influence over his actions. My heart went to the deceased Second. I saw him slowing down the speed of his hand seals considerably too. Good to see that.

I noted that he was going for Water Release, Water Wall for some reason. I immediately flew through several hand seals, sticking to using chakra to enhance the speed of which I performed the hand seals. "Water Release, Great Water Wave!" I roared, emitting a great water wave towards from my outstretched hands. The wave flew towards the Second at speeds unmatched by natural means.

The Second saw the gigantic incoming wave and promptly jumped over it and continued his long sequence of "Water Release, Water Wall!" the Second yelled, sending out a large wall of water around me, trapping me inside it.

I wasn't panicking, however. In fact, while not as planned, I flew through another set of hand seals, Dragon, Boar, Dragon, Ram, Rabbit, Tiger, "Fire Release, Great Hellish Inferno!" I cried out, spitting out a column of white-hot fire out of my mouth. I turned around in a full circle, warming up the entire wall of water, turning it into steam, even burning some of the trees that the First had created with his battle with Turtle. My white fire even burned off some of the barrier.

I had to get up close to the Second in order to extract the soul, and then seal it away after the battle. Can't have such a useful spirit go to the stomach of the Shinigami, now, can I? No, I would not even think about resurrecting him either. He rightfully deserved the rest. I too had to remove the First Hokage's soul and seal it, too. With that gone, I think the current Hokage, the Third, can extract more than just Orochimaru's arms. Maybe some of his legs as well?

The Second went through another set of hand seals quickly, activating "Water Release, Water Shockwave!" and sent it towards me. The water was in from of a gigantic wave, basically a tsunami, really, easily dwarfing the previous wall of water he had made.

Shit is about to hit the fan.

"Earth Release," I slam my hands down the ground, creating a massive wall of solid mud, "Mud Wall!"

The water crashed against the mud wall, cracking the wall a great deal. Some of the water even seeped through the small hairline cracks that decorated the wall. But the solid wall made out of mud held.

However I did not anticipate a kick to the back of my head. I blame inexperience for that. I had been constantly hardening my bones with chakra, and it had proved beneficiary. Good thinking there, Shinji! I knew I could count on myself! I'm a veritable genius!

The kick sent me head first against my own wall of solid mud. So hard was the kick that I in fact was sent through it. Though thankfully it had been weakened beforehand by the Second's water wave.

Ow. Let me tell you right now, it is _very _painful being sent _through _a wall! Even if said wall is made of mud! It paralysed me with intense pain for a few crucial seconds.

In these crucial seconds, the Second darted towards me with speeds second only to other Kage-level shinobi. He once again kicked me, but this time upwards, and it hurt like hell! I almost hit the barrier, but I managed to straighten myself up before I could hit it. I went through another set of hand seals, Dragon, Boar, Tiger, Monkey and then Tiger again, "Lightning Release, False Darkness!" I sent out a beam of blue-tinted lightning out of my mouth towards Tobirama. It hit him, effectively disintegrating him. I landed back on the roof as he began to reconstruct himself.

It was scary, seeing something reconstruct itself after being hit by something that should more than likely completely destroy it. Permanently.

And that was how it went. He began to use a long sequence of hand seals, I identified it, countered it with the same set of hand seals, both of us using water jutsu, with the occasional Lightning release from me. It was clear, though that the Second Hokage was gradually gaining ground. Due to the longer sequence of hand seals, his jutsu had more of a punch, and only was the ground evened out when I used a Lightning release jutsu.

"Time to end this!" I said angrily, continually being pushed back was frustrating, after all. It was effectively a stalemate between the two of us, though in a war of attrition, I'd definitely win. Thing was, it wasn't a war of attrition. Impure World Resurrection zombies don't have a limit like living beings on the amounts of chakra they have. Sort of like me, really.

I stretched my hand towards the Second and roared, "Bansho Ten'in!"

You can guess the result. I put my hand on his silver haired head and quickly extracted his soul.

I immediately took out a scroll-set – consisting of ink, brush and a scroll – from my white kimono with my free hand and laid out Tobirama's pure soul down, preparing to seal him away for eternity. I painted down the seals necessary for sealing off the re-resurrection of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

I added chakra to the sealing art-

And Tobirama Senju was sealed off for all eternity.

The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, the Silver Water Head of Konoha, returned to the land of the dead.

Time to check up on Turtle's fight with the reincarnated First Hokage.

* * *

><p>Turtle did a remarkable job of holding off a Kage-level shinobi off. Then again, you are never an ANBU captain for nothing. But the reason Turtle made an astounding job was because of his affinity for fire, burning away the trees surrounding him every now and then. Though I noticed that the residue fires on the trees only slightly singed them. Huh, what a curious phenomena. It might be because the trees were from the First. The First, Hashirama Senju, from whom the Will of Fire stemmed from, was after all the one from which the Mokuton, the Wood Release, stemmed from.<p>

Turtle jumped close to my position. "How are you holding up?" I ask him.

"I'll be fine! Focus on your opponent!" Turtle replied.

I sighed, "I'm finished with mine, I'm here to help you with yours." I looked down on Turtle's uniform. Sure enough, he had lost his white coat, leaving him with the standard ANBU outfit. His turtle mask was severely scratched, almost to the point where you could see his face. And I noted that he was panting heavily and was bleeding from somewhere from his face. Blood was dripping from his jaw, after all.

"I don't need your help, fool!" Turtle glared at me. I raised an eyebrow. Wow, I would not have expected that reply... you'd almost think he would be Sasuke, what with his probable inferiority complex. I turn to face Hashirama's zombie-like body. "Well, if you know how to permanently defeat an Impure World Resurrection zombie, be my guest!" I answered back sarcastically, gesturing towards the waiting figure of the First Hokage.

My guess was that the ANBU captain glared back at me, but eventually he conceded. "Fine." he mumbled.

Yes! I fist-bumped the air, earning a curious glare from Turtle. Or I think it was a curious glare. I couldn't tell because of the mask.

I immediately turn back to Hashirama's revived body and stick out a hand. I don't want to fuss around with him, I had already done that bit with Tobirama. I whisper, so faint that not even Turtle could hear it, "Bansho Ten'in."

Hashirama's fake body was pulled towards me head-first. His head was slammed on my hand, making a loud clapping noise, and the pain I felt wasn't the worst, I'll just say that now.

I pulled and once again the results were obvious. Hashirama's life-chakra was visible, heck, even his armour was shown. Probably because his chakra had run through his armour on his point of death.

Turtle was staring at my work. Not bothering to look smug, I once again took out my sealing equipment, scroll, ink and brush, and began working on sealing Hashirama Senju's, the originator of the Will of Fire, soul away for eternity. To let him finally have some rest.

I once again added chakra to the intricate symbols of the seal, and, curiously enough, in a puff of smoke, Hashirama Senju's soul was once again laid to rest. This time for forever.

Time to check how Old Man Hokage was holding up in his match against Orochimaru, and most likely his summons as well.

* * *

><p>He was dead.<p>

The Hokage was dead.

_The Old Man Hokage was dead!_

How the fuck did that happen!

I was supposed to save him using my version of the Fourth's Hiraishin jutsu, but instead, he fucking up and_ died _using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, and by proxy chakra exhaustion, summoning the Death God, the freaking Shinigami, and as I noticed, only sealed off Orochimaru's arms! What the hell, Old man! That was not the thought out plan!

I stared in shock at the Old Man's body. His face was set in a smile, Orochimaru's sword of Kusanagi running through his chest, despite Enma, the Monkey King, holding onto it.

I didn't even notice the barrier going down, Orochimaru's screams of pain, the Sound Four coming to his rescue. I just stared at the old man-

Of course... he was an old man. He deserved it, so I had no real reason to become angry at him, now did I? No, I did not. Just because he didn't follow the plan _I _had made doesn't give me the right to become angry at anyone, especially not the old man. Not at all...

Doesn't mean I can't be sad by his departure, either.

I stepped over to his body, picking it up what one could call 'bridal style'. I walked slowly to the edge of the roof before jumping down to the arena, I idly noted that Turtle followed me. I used chakra to strengthen both my bones and lighten my fall. I lightly landed on the ground. All of a sudden there were both cries of victory and defeat. With the ones of victory quickly being silenced.

What a curious scenario.

The Old Man Hokage was dead, and yet-

Yet how come I felt nothing? I felt nothing. Nothingness, no, rather emptiness flooded my being. I felt nothing as I laid him carefully on the ground.

All of a sudden, like a dam being burst, the water tearing the dam apart, anger filled me.

The Third's death was caused by a combination of both my inexperience and incompetence, but the most definite factor in the Third Hokage's death was without a shadow of a doubt Orochimaru. That wretched _traitor_! I'll _kill him_! I'll _fucking kill him_!

"Time to kick some Oto ass!" I yelled out, with Turtle firmly agreeing, using shunshin to go up to the stages to assist his fellow Konoha ninja.

Meanwhile I just stood there, staring at the battles overhead with a glare adorning my face. Truly, the time to kick Oto ass was here. I didn't give a shit about my past life, I didn't care about the friends I had before I arrived in paradise, no. In fact, I couldn't care less about it right now. My care-o-meter was at an all-time low in that area. All I was thinking about at the time was "I'll kill every single one of them!", and then I'd give everyone a reason to be afraid, to be very afraid, of ever attacking Konoha!

I sealed the Hokage's body in another scroll I had, not the same one I had sealed the previous Hokage in. I ran out of the arena, or tried to. Two Oto ninja were blocking my path.

They had a very heated departure from this world.

* * *

><p>That day, I had killed twenty-three Oto and Suna ninja. I kept count of how many I had killed.<p>

That day, the Invasion of Konoha began, and ended. With a total destruction cost of over 180 billion ryo. And over 300 deaths in total, from both sides. The entire invasion force was destroyed, but with the casualties on our side, we might as well have lost. Thank goodness we didn't, because then the casualties would have been even higher.

Well, it could have been worse.

The invasion could have been a success. Jiraya could have not been present in Konoha. I could have died. Gaara could have been in the village. Naruto could have died. Now that would have been bad.

Yeah... could have been much worse.

I just wish the old man wouldn't have died. But alas, wishes don't make the man!

* * *

><p>I stood on a rooftop in a black kimono. I had never been able to stand being close to a funeral for some reason or other. Probably because funerals practically oozed grief and despair. Sadness and sorrow.<p>

What a befitting song, too. I loved it. I loved the play of violin, the guitar, the flute, all of it. So dramatic, so powerful. So... sad. Yet, it played in such a way where it gives us another hope, or that there is still hope out there, for the people of Konoha.

And with me here, the Will of Fire will be burning brighter than the sun itself!

That's right, world! I have taken to the Will of Fire!

* * *

><p>"So, how are you holding up, Jiraya?" I asked Jiraya. He was standing on top of a building overlooking downtown Konoha.<p>

"I'm holding up good." he said, withdrawing a telescope out of one of his pockets. He retracted the butt of the telescopic device and began to look into it. I followed the direction of his sight, and what I saw made me chuckle.

He sure has good tastes in women. Wait. Anko was there too.

Fuck. I immediately put a hand on the telescope, "Anko-chan is there. Don't you dare look at her!" I said angrily at him. No one looks at a naked Anko! Except me!

Jiraya looks at me weirdly but chuckles nonetheless. "Sure sure, she's your woman, I got it." he smiles.

I blushed heavily, "Goddammit, Jiraya!" he just grinned and chuckled.

Just then, a door opens in the background. Both I and Jiraya turn to face Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane.

I knew what would happen here, as well as Jiraya, seeing as I had been playing the 'clairvoyant' and told him about the situation. Homura and Koharu would ask Jiraya about becoming Hokage, he would reject, we would search for Tsunade, Naruto would learn the Rasengan, blah blah blah...

"Jiraya," Homura said, "We have an offer for you."

"And the answer is no. I refuse." Jiraya coldly tells them off, leaning on the railing casually.

"But with Konoha not having a leader! You're the only one who has both the experience and ability to be Hokage!" Koharu desperately said. Understandably, too. They were Konoha folk at the bottom of their hearts, the good of Konoha was at their forefront of their minds.

Jiraya continued, ignoring the two advisers of the late Third Hokage, "However, I know someone who could take up the offer in my stead." he said smugly. He loved pissing off the Third's teammates. And I firmly agreed with him. It was fun pissing off anyone, really.

I crossed my arms and leaned forward a bit, "And the one he is referring to is his former teammate, Tsunade Senju of the Sannin." I smirked.

"Ts-Tsunade? But she hates Konoha with a passion! How in the world would you be able to convince Tsunade-sama to become a Hokage of all things?" Homura asked.

"Let us worry about that, you old farts." I smirked smugly. I might start like angering the two ninja-turned-civilians.

Koharu bristled, but reined in her rage. I chuckled at her response. Homura just brushed it off like the wind that was currently blowing around us.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you want to bring him with you, Takuma-san?"<p>

"Of course I am. If we don't bring him with us he won't learn the Rasengan. That, I tell you, is extremely crucial!"

I heard loud slurping noises coming from the Ichiraku's. Good, that means the person I'm getting is there. I walked up to the Ramen Stand and pushed aside the small curtains, "Is there a Naruto Uzumaki present?" I said, trying, and failing miserably, to sound epic.

The moment I ended my sentence I heard a loud banging noise and saw Naruto had slammed down his bowl of ramen. He looked at me with pure happiness and dried his mouth with his orange sleeve. "Takuma-sensei!" he grinned.

I grinned back at him, "Hey there, squirt!"

"I'm not a squirt!" he yells indignantly, humiliated a little.

"You are as long as you are that small." I said to him. Then I clapped my hands together and said, "That's not what I'm here for, though! How about we go for a training trip, Naruto? What do you say about that?"

Naruto fist-bumped the air, "Hell yeah!"

I bopped him on his head, "Ow!" "Language, Naruto!"


	12. The Search For Tsunade Begins

Naruto had been complaining and complaining the whole way before even the first stop we made. "When will you train me?" and "I'm hungry! Ramen! Believe it!". It was funny at first, but it got old fast.

"Takuma-sensei...?" Naruto pouted, trying to imitate the puppy-dog look. And miserably failing at it.

I sighed in exasperation, "Yes, Naruto?" I asked, hesitant for the answer. My gut feeling tells me that he will say-

"I'm hungry. Believe it. Are we there yet?"

I was right, he would ask for food. I swear I even heard his stomach groan in protest for lack of food.

"No, we're almost there, I believe," I turned to Jiraya, who was thinking deeply about something. Sure, he had a sombre face, but his nosebleed gave him away, "Isn't that right, Jiraya?" I asked, with a far too sweet a voice. I know that _the voice _is more suited for females, but come on, when have I cared about such trivial things? Besides, if he was daydreaming about Anko... well, let's just say there'll be one less pervert peeking on girls in their private time in the hot springs.

Jiraya snapped towards me, sweating bullets, "Wha- no! I- I mean..." he scratched his chin, "What?" he asked sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment to have been caught daydreaming about naked women. Here's hoping it wasn't Anko-chan he was dreaming about, or there'd be hell to pay.

"I said," a thunder cloud appeared ominously above my head, "We're soon there, _right?_" I swear Jiraya was pissing in his underwear right there, how scared he was.

"What, of course! Yes, yes! We're there soon!" he looked desperately at Naruto, searching for some back-up from my impending wrath, "Right, Naruto?"

Naruto nodded vigorously, "Uh-huh!"

And all of a sudden the thunder cloud dissipated, "Good." I said, glad that the little debate was over. I have never like debates, even if I sometimes make them. Stupid thing being over, everyone is happy. There. Over.

* * *

><p>Finally we arrived at the first town. Immediately after we had rented a hotel room and put our packs there Jiraya went off somewhere with the excuse to 'check his information network'. Yeah right. He just wanted to go to the brothel or something. Though to be perfectly honest, it wasn't really any of my business. If he wanted to be killed on one point by a sultry kunoichi, then so be it. I hoped, though, that it still would be Pain that would kill him, like in canon. Though I by no means wanted him dead, oh no! Only if he really were thinking about Anko! And only then!<p>

"So, Naruto," I practically threw myself on the futon on the floor, folding my hands behind my head. The only thing I needed now was a cigarette to complete the look, but I wouldn't start smoking. Never!, "Want to learn something cool?" I asked Naruto. Of course, I didn't need to say that at all, all I had to really do was to show him what I wanted to learn him and say, 'Want to learn it?' and he'd look at me expectantly and shout 'Yes! Believe it!'.

As expected, Naruto jumped up from his sitting position and leaned towards me. So big was the smile on his face that it, hypothetically speaking, shouldn't be possible for the face to _not _be split in two. "Yes! Believe it!" he shouted.

I chuckled and held my hand up. Naruto looked at it, expecting some kind awesome jutsu behind it. And he'd not be disappointed.

I began to channel some chakra to my left hand, enough to make it visible. Naruto stared at it in wonder, making 'ooh' and 'ah' sounds every now and then. Then I applied rotation to the chakra. But not in just a big circle, oh no, I sent it in several directions at once, but not overextending any of the circle of chakra. Basically, I created a Rasengan for him to see.

Naruto stared at it some more, his mouth shaped like an 'O'. No, you pervert, I will not insert anything into it, not even a pair of chopsticks holding ramen. That's Naruto's own thing to do.

I chuckled some more, "See that?" I asked him. "That's the Rasengan."

"Rasengan..." Naruto stared in wonder. His eyes were wide and his shoulders slack.

"Yes. And it's the personal jutsu of the Fourth Hokage, along with the Flying Thunder God technique." I cancelled the technique, clenching my left hand and folded it back behind my head.

"The Fourth's personal jutsu! And I'll learn it!" I nodded. Naruto jumped up, fist-bumping the air at the same time, "Yes!" he shouted out in happiness. After all, it will be the only jutsu he would perfect along with the Shadow Clone technique. Well, no, there's also the summoning technique, along with Sage Mode, but Sage Mode is later in Shippuden, so there's no need to think about that!

"How do you do it, sensei? How? Tell me how! Please!" Naruto practically shouted at me, begging me for the Rasengan.

I once again did something I do often around Naruto. I chuckled. "Sure. However, there is one thing only you can get before we start." I said seriously.

"Anything, believe it, Takuma-sensei! Anything!" Naruto begged in extreme enthusiasm. You'd almost think he'd literally shine in it, making others bask in it. If they could see past the hateful fox, that is.

I pointed to my sack that I had brought with me, "First, you get some money from my bag," then I pointed to the hotel door that lead to the corridor outside, "and then you head out and buy some balloons and rubber balls." I saw Naruto become bewildered from my request, "Don't worry, it does have something to do with your training for the Rasengan." I assured him.

With that Naruto darted to my sack and got out some money after a bit of direction from me and some fishing on his part. And then he ran out the door, almost forgetting to close it on the way out.

Finally.

Silence.

And well deserved, I say...

"I'm bored." I said. And lo and behold-

Nothing happened. I was truly bored at that moment. The reason for why I didn't go with Naruto in the first place was because I simply did not on impulse. I have those weird impulses sometimes, but they have grown increasingly rare, I noted with a faint smile.

"Ah, nothing like the sweetness of the midday, don't you think, me?" I said to myself.

And I had a long conversation afterwards with myself. I sometimes do that when nobody's around.

And then I fell asleep.

* * *

><p>"Here you go, Takuma-sensei!" Naruto boisterously said, dropping all the contents he had been carrying on me.<p>

"Gyah!" I flailed around with my arms, surprised over the sudden awakening. What the hell was that for, Naruto! It was completely uncalled for!

I manage to suppress my irritation on Naruto. After I had calmed down a bit, I saw that he had gotten an equal amount of both balloons and rubber balls. "Good job, Naruto! Now after you have filled the balloons with water, then we can begin your training for the Rasengan!" I grinned at him. I received a grin back from Naruto.

Naruto went to the bathroom with all the balloons and proceeded to fill all fifty of them with enough water that they almost burst with it. Then, after about, funny enough, fifty minutes, Naruto was finished with filling the balloons to the brim and tied their ends with a knot. Then he carried them all back to the room.

I looked at him while he had done all that. It was strange, watching someone who constantly had a content smile on their face while they did trivial, mundane and annoying tasks. It was almost as if Naruto enjoyed doing something like this. Hell, I actually shouldn't be so surprised by it. After all, there aren't that many people that appreciate Naruto for who he is. I am one of his 'precious people' now, I guess. The thought made me smile. Now being precious to someone, now that's a good feeling. Maybe I should experience it more often then? Perhaps, perhaps. What with Naruto around, there will be little time to be bored, that was for sure!

"There, all done!" Naruto turned towards me, "Now what, Takuma-sensei?" he asked.

I chuckled and handed him one of the balloons with water in it. "You have to learn to pop it." Naruto stared at me, confused. "Only with chakra."

"Oh! I'll do it!" Naruto fist-bumped the air, "Believe it!"

"Oh I do believe it, as you say," I clapped my hands together twice, egging Naruto to get doing it, "Now, go try it, Naruto Uzumaki!" I said. And I almost added Namikaze to his name. Just almost. Thank goodness I didn't, or Jiraya and I would have to answer his questions.

Naruto immediately went down to sit on one of the three futons and picked a balloon. He started to look at it with a concentrated look on his face. He began to pour chakra into the balloon. I could tell because I had the Rinnegan. One of the abilities of the Rinnegan is to allow the wielder to see chakra. If I had been able to deactivate the Rinnegan, I'd still be able to see the chakra flowing through the balloon.

I looked at Naruto, "I'll give you a tip, Naruto." Naruto broke off from his trance of concentration and looked at me expectantly, "Rotation in several directions at once." Naruto looked at me confusedly. He began to squint at me and scratched the top of his head for a while. All of a sudden he yelled "Aha!" and began to focus once again on the balloon.

And what I saw did not surprise me at all.

The Balloon stretched in several circles, but it didn't burst. And it wasn't at once. Naruto did noticed that. He began to get frustrated over the course of half an hour.

I leaned back on the futon, silent-

Splash!

I felt water hit my kimono and my face. That's weird. Naruto shouldn't be able to master the Rasengan in first try at all! I must make him try again, I thought.

I rose up from my lying position slowly, in shock. I, slowly, looked at Naruto in wonder. Then all of a sudden I grinned. Naruto grinned back and began to scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Heheh, sorry, Takuma-sensei..."

We sat in tense silence for a minute, "Holy shit. It took me forty balloons to get that step right." I said. And it was true. Well, sort of. It took me forty five balloons to make me master it. Well, I guess that just goes to show that even when someone has unbelievable chakra and a doujutsu, it does not mean that that someone is above the ones that don't have it. Well, at least not the doujutsu part. Naruto has enormous amounts of chakra to begin with.

I proceeded to give him another balloon. And Naruto proceeded to burst it. I gave him another. He made it burst. And another. He made it burst too. In the end, both me and Naruto were soaked in water.

And I just couldn't believe that he had been able to get it down so quick. In canon he had to use-

Oh... Right. Anko and I had trained him to the ground, and thus had given his the chakra control necessary to at least perform the Rasengan. How efficient, I say!

"Well... You've completed that step." I said in wonderment. Then I reached over and handed Naruto a rubber ball. "Here. You need to burst it too."

I hoped that I would be right that here-

Bam!

Goddammit!

I felt a piece of rubber slam into my face. Hard. Hard enough to leave an imprint. Dammit! That will definitely leave a mark. It slid comically down my face, revealing my grumpy expression.

"Well..." I stared, my eyes half-lidded, "Seems like the only thing you need to do now is to repeat both steps with a balloon that is not filled with water. Get."

Naruto had emptied all the balloons for water and had disposed of all the leftover rubber balls into a trash-can in the corridor outside the hotel room.

"Now," I told him, holding up an empty balloon, "You will do the exact same things, just this time," I blew into the red balloon, filling it up with air, to the point where it almost burst, "your goal is to _not _pop the balloon. It is here that it is difficult." I let the balloon float onto my palm, and I started to gather chakra into my palm, creating a Rasengan inside the balloon.

"What's happening inside it, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Good thing you ask, Naruto," I said. I held up my free hand and created a Rasengan on it.

"Oh! Right, I'll do it in a jiffy! Believe it!" he fist-bumped the air. He then grabbed an empty balloon and started to focus on it.

I wanted to have him learn the Rasengan as quickly as possible, "Careful. If you put too much chakra behind it the balloon will burst. You don't want that." so I gave him a tip. Damn my gentleheartedness...

Naruto nodded in response and closed his eyes in concentration.

Almost there, Naruto.

And after a minute of tense silence, Naruto opened his eyes and gave a large smile to me. Well, damn!

"Well, damn!" I decided to voice my thoughts. "It took me one hundred and eight tries to perfect that step of the Rasengan, Naruto! You're a prodigy at hard work!" I grinned at him.

As usual when I grin at Naruto, he grinned back.

We heard a knock at the door. It was probably Jiraya, so I leaned myself back and waved for Naruto to take it.

And I once again slept. Past Jiraya's astonishment that I somehow knew the Rasengan and its three steps to learn it, and that Naruto managed to learn it _in a freaking day! _I slept through Jiraya once again stalking off to a brothel-

but I didn't sleep through Naruto jumping on me all of a sudden.

"What is it, Naruto?" I said tiredly. I rubbed my eyes a little. Damn, I was tired. Must have slept for a few hours. Dammit.

"We're going, Takuma-sensei!" he yelled. Bang bang bang, and Naruto had three bumps on his head, courtesy of my hand that all of a sudden gained a life of its own. Damn hand. You do not hit people like that. "Naruto, you do not wake people up like that!"

"Sorry, Takuma-sensei!" Naruto yelled once again, his bumps all but gone and he was striding around, cleaning up after us. What a nice thing to do, Naruto!

"Anyway, yeah, I'm up!" I said, jumping up, ready to enjoy the rest of the day.

* * *

><p>It had been a week since Naruto had learned the Rasengan. He had yet to master the complete Rasengan, but I felt that Kabuto would need to be alive for Shippuden. He would, after all, use the Impure World Resurrection, and it was probably very important that Kabuto did that. I think.<p>

You know what, to hell with it, I'd teach Naruto the complete Rasengan! Besides, there's no way he'd be able to master it to the degree he has in Shippuden! Right?

… Right?

Damn Shadow Clones...

* * *

><p>"Hey, Naruto!" I called. We had rented yet another hotel room in yet another hotel. This town was closer to Konoha than the last town. Because of Jiraya's spy network had told him that Tsunade might have been in this town. I knew that she wasn't. Probably had been, though. Jiraya had stalked off yet again with another attractive girl. One of these days his perversive nature will be the end of him. Though I knew he'd not die from being attracted to the opposite sex, but rather stabbed repeatedly by chakra rods. Miserable death, I say. Oh well, that's life, I guess. It gets taken away and then given after that. If you count Bleach in it, that is...<p>

"Yeah-" before Naruto could successfully finish his response, we heard a knock on the door.

Since I was closer to the door I went to open it.

And when I opened it what I saw made me slam the door shut.

"Naruto, we're leaving!"

And the door was suddenly broken apart by a large _thing _with bandages covering its form completely.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I know, I know. Naruto is learning the Rasengan far too quickly, but please. Bare with me here? Please?

Also, I know this is one of the shorter chapters, but don't worry, next chapter will be about 3000 words as well! Don't you worry!


	13. First Encounter

I immediately identified the _thing_ that destroyed the door as Samehada, Kisame Hoshigaki's sword, 'stolen' from one of the legendary Seven Swordsmen of The Mist. Damn fish-guy had killed the previous wielder.

The sword-that-shaves... must be why no one in Akatsuki is bearded. Well, we don't know about Madara, but it is highly unlikely, since all Uchiha don't have a shadow of a beard.

The sword crashed into me and sent me flying through the wall the opposite side of the door. Fucking hell it hurt!

"Takuma-sensei!" Naruto yelled out in concern, approaching the hole in the wall.

Kisame, the fish-guy, had sent me through the wall, sure enough. Good thing I had used chakra to enhance my bone structure. Thank you, Mei! Damn, I thank her too much...

I landed on the ground in front of the hotel. People began to stare in wonder at the showcase, and some even thought it to be a movie being played, or maybe an act. Stupid people, I say! But then again, it's not like I would have done anything. Or would I? Well, I'm not in that situation to begin with, so no need to think about that.

"Who are you bastards to have done that to Takuma-sensei?" Naruto roared to the assailants.

I decided to tune out Naruto's rantings and began to fly through specific hand seals. As I did the hand seals I jumped up and smashed my feet against Samehada. I had used chakra to both enhance my jump and to make my kick have super strength behind it. And I swear I heard Samehada whimper in pain.

Kisame, as strong as he is, and as much chakra as he has, he lost his grip on Samehada and it flew away. The sword embedded itself stuck on the wall beside the door. Now Kisame had to swing around both a portion of the building _and _had to deal with me!

"What the hell?" Kisame yelled, staring at me, surprised by the strength my deceivingly good looking, but still lean-built, body had.

"Earth Release, Mud Bullet Technique!" I said, and as the name suggested, I shot out mud bullets from my hands. The mud bullets crashed against Kisame's form, sending him to the wall next to Samehada.

"Tsukiyomi!"

Shit! In my hassle with the fish-dude I had forgotten about Itachi!

Now I was stuck. On a cross similar to the one Jesus had been said to have been crucified on. There were hundreds of Itachis standing about. Each held a sword, and each sword would without a doubt penetrate my stomach, eventually causing me so much pain I'd black out.

"This is the-" Itachi began, but before he could finish his first sentence I interrupted him.

"World of Tsukiyomi, I know. I've seen it three times now, I think." I said.

Itachi widened his eyes, "You've experienced Tsukiyomi before? By whom?"

"I'm not about to tell you, stupid Uchiha!". Yeah, bad move. I know.

"You should know that I have seventy two hours to torture you in. If you tell me I will go easier on you."

"Seventy two hours that won't happen," I said, "Shinra Tensei!" I roared.

And I guess it worked, because the illusion broke, since Itachi was forced through a wall, and not just that wall, but the one behind that also.

Luckily for me, I had been able to learn how to direct the Shinra Tensei and Bansho Ten'in to one direction specifically. Well, it wasn't difficult, let me tell you that. All I really had to do was to imagine the results. And bam! Instant result. Therefore, Naruto was not hit by the Shinra Tensei I had sent.

"This is getting fun!" Kisame had returned and had torn the sword off the wall, almost ripping off the bandages of it. Then again, it wasn't necessary, because I knew what was behind the bandages. Kisame ran at me, approaching me in rapid paces.

I brought up my hands, enforcing them with chakra, hardening its skin to make them as difficult to break as diamonds, but not going for any outward output of chakra, to ensure that Samehada wouldn't suck any of my chakra out of me.

The sword slammed onto my crossed arms, sending a painful jolt throughout my entire body. Damn, it really, really hurt!

"My sword doesn't cut-" Kisame began. He prepared to slice my shoulder, since I couldn't hold it back that far.

I enhanced my shoulder, and just in case, I made more chakra run through my arms, enhancing my strength in my arms some more. I shoved the sword hastily up while I kneeled down, avoiding the sword-that-shaves, Samehada.

"It shaves!" I finished, and put some extra umph behind my strength, making my chakra

run through my entire body, enhancing it beyond what would be considered humanly possible.

Kisame widened his eyes. "How did you know-" before he could finish his sentence Naruto had slammed a finished Rasengan into Kisame's stomach. Kisame roared in pain and was once again sent to the wall, just this time, he was through it. "Rasengan!"

I heard Naruto pant a little. Must have exerted himself and put too much chakra to the Rasengan. Stupid little squirt.

I grinned and grabbed onto the scruff of Naruto's neck. I jumped backwards to the roof of the building on the opposite side of the road, just as a great flame descended upon the spot of which Naruto and I had just stood upon. Fire Release, Grand Fireball Technique, I identified.

Inside the raging fire stood both Itachi and Kisame, and despite the relatively hard pounding they had received, courtesy of me, they looked quite unharmed. Funny, it is. Kisame was grinning like the mad-man he is, and Itachi had his hand in his black Akatsuki robes. Speaking of Akatsuki robes, Kisame's was torn up completely in the stomach area, and his stomach had a noticeable spiralling mark on it Ouch, that would leave a scar.

"That was fun." Kisame said cheerily. He put his Samehada on his shoulder, and he looked quite intimidating.

Itachi merely grunted in response, but I noticed that he was glaring at me with a calculative glint in his eyes. And when someone glares at me, it's _usually _because they're pissed. Well, usually. And I'm sure that this was one of those cases. And his Sharingan didn't help me, that's for sure.

I put my hands behind my back and began to do a few hand seals. Itachi noticed my actions, but simply enhanced his glare and tensed up.

"Water Release, Water Bullet!" I roared, bringing up my hands for them to shoot out a cannon of water out of them.

The water neared the two Akatsuki members, only for it to halt at the chakra consuming sword-that-shaves. Damn Samehada! I could really use Jiraya's help right about now!

That gives me a great idea!

Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey then Ram. "Summoning Technique!" I slammed my hand down on the roof of the building, and in a great puff of smoke, a gigantic multi-headed brown dog with cute little wings on its back appeared. I was sure it stunned Kisame and Itachi, since it had Rinnegan eyes and piercings all over its body, but they apparently shook it off quite quickly.

It was a truly fearsome creature.

And it was a creature that I, Naruto, Itachi and Kisame would remember. Hell, I remember it as the frustrating opponent Gamaken and Jiraya had to fight during Jiraya's infiltration into the Rain Village, Ame.

The dog charged at Itachi and Kisame. The Akatsuki members jumped to avoid it, but they weren't prepared for the multi-headed dog to split one if its head to head towards Itachi.

I left the dogs to their own devices and crouched down to Naruto's level, "Naruto, can you-"

I was interrupted by Naruto's shout, "That was so _awesome_! Can you teach me that, Takuma-sensei? Please!"

"Not now, Naruto," I said urgently, "Can you create some shadow clones and search for Jiraya? I need his experience here and _now_!"

"No need to worry about that, Takuma-san! The great super-pervert is here!" Jiraya stomped his way with his red geta on his feet.

I sweat-dropped, "Seriously, were you just... nevermind." I said with a disappointed tone in my voice. Honestly. Why are all old men perverts or closet perverts in every anime? Damn Dragon Ball for starting that trend!

I saw the multi-headed one of the two dogs get pummelled by Kisame's Samehada, thus getting dispelled since it was drained of its chakra, and the other, single-headed dog get burned from the great black flames of the Mangekyo Sharingan, Amaterasu.

Dammit, I had hoped that it would distract them enough that we could have made an escape. I really didn't want to fight a Sharingan wielder and the owner of Samehada, but alas, you can't have everything you want.

"Jiraya, you go after fish-guy, I'm going after the Uchiha!" I said to Jiraya. Jiraya nodded and ran after Kisame, who was prepared for the incoming battle.

I had also been trained in chakra sensing, once again courtesy of Mei, bless her soul, and while I was by far from any kind of expert, I could sense the unrestrained chakra that charged against Itachi. I immediately recognized it as Sasuke's his chakra being distinctly off-putting and filled to the brim with coldness, but not necessarily evil just yet. However, that was just about the only thing I could sense about him. I couldn't see if someone was a Jinchuuriki or something, I wasn't Karin, you see.

"Shit, Sasuke is here!" Naruto looked up in surprise.

"Sasuke's here? What is he doing here, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto asked, worried that his 'best friend' might get into trouble.

"I don't know," I lied, "But you have to go and stop him! I think he is planning on getting revenge on Itachi, but I'm not sure. Now, go after your teammate!" I pointed towards the general direction of which Sasuke was in.

Naruto fist-bumped the air and charged off to the way I was pointing, jumping from roof to roof.

I myself began to jump in the general direction of Itachi, just to see how the thing would play out, now that the fight would not be in a corridor, and now that I was here to stall and whatnot.

I landed close to Itachi and tensed up immediately, ready for whatever strike would be incoming.

Yet, I found none.

"I see. You have the Rinnegan." Itachi said.

I widened my eyes. How the hell did-

Oh right.

The Sharingan can see through genjutsu.

I fucking_ hate _that thing! It's official, I was going to find a way to fuck it up three ways to Sunday, I swear on my ninja way!

Okay, that was a wrong choice of words...

I scoffed, "Yeah. What of it?" I said. Here's hoping he wouldn't go and tell his leader. That'd be a real shame. Really! Then after the ensuing scuffle between me and Pain, or Nagato, as his real name is, there'd only be one Rinnegan wielder left. Truly a shame that a cripple must die. Yes, truly.

"Leader also has the Rinnegan. And he claims that there is another out there. Now I know who has it. Thank you... Takuma-san." Itachi said. He probably thought he surprised me by knowing my name, but with my flaunting it around during the Bloodline Civil War.

"Leader told you that, did he now?" I taunted, "Let me guess. He's not the actual leader of Akatsuki. The one guy with the orange mask is, and guess what? He's Madara Uchiha!" I said, spreading my arms about, "Of all people," Itachi finally widened his eyes in surprise, "It _had _to be a filthy, arrogant Uchiha! The only exception to the rule of arrogance and hate that all Uchiha seem to go under would be Obito Uchiha, your mother, Mikoto Uchiha," and then I let my arms fall back to my sides. My face softened, "And then," I gestured at Itachi with my hands, "There's you." Itachi's eyes widened even farther.

I sensed Naruto's and Sasuke's chakra stop by a nearby alley, close enough that you could hear and see what was going on between Itachi and me. I felt Sasuke's chakra fluctuate greatly, with Naruto being really close behind. Close enough that he could hold him back, that is.

"You sacrificed your own pride so Sasuke could live happily and grow strong with his friends. You made Sasuke hate you, because you loved him like a brother should, and wanted him to be strong," I continued on, "You killed your entire family with the help of Madara Uchiha, who offered his help, but you couldn't kill your own brother. You simply loved him too much," I got a determined expression, and looked straight into Itachi's Sharingan eyes. Most people would have called that action foolish. I call it foolish as well, but what am I, if not a fool?

"And it was all under the order of the Third Hokage and his two advisers, wasn't it?" I asked Itachi.

Once again, Itachi's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you know that? It's an S-class secret!" Itachi nearly shouted. Good, he's beginning to lose his composure. That way Sasuke can see who Itachi truly is. Hopefully Sasuke would realize the sheer sadness that Itachi had to go through that he had to suffer through and the tears he had shed for his murdered family. Of course, I was expecting Sasuke to not get anything because of his hatred, but with Naruto there, his supposed 'best friend', he would be able to see reason.

"That's my secret to keep." I mysteriously said.

There was a minute of silence.

I sensed Kisame's chakra coming nearby, before he landed next to Itachi. His robes were severely damaged, burns adorning his black Akatsuki robes. He was also panting very heavily. Apparently Jiraya had not been beating around the bush with Kisame, what with both of them being famous S-class criminals.

Samehada was also almost broken in half, I noted.

Huh. I didn't know physical strength could break the sword-that-shaves.

Dammit, I can't get over that! The sword-that-shaves! Really, what's wrong with slicing? Honestly!

"Itachi, let's go! I got trouble from Jiraya of the Sannin!" Kisame said. He looked like someone who could really use a shower, too.

And I admit, I was curious, so I channelled some chakra through my nose.

And he also smelled like someone who could use a shower, too.

Anyway, Itachi and I continued our staring contest for a few seconds, before I said something, "Please don't tell anyone about my secret, and in return, I'll not tell yours. I promise." I closed my eyes and tapped the spot right below my eyes.

I opened my eyes to see Itachi nod, and then both Itachi and Kisame used shunshin to disappear.

There was silence for a minute, before I heard-

"Bullshit." I heard. My guess was it was from Sasuke. Yeah, it seemed the most likely.

"Bullshit!" I heard again. This time it was firmer, more sure of itself. I turned towards the source of the voice.

"You can come out now. I know you're there... Sasuke, Naruto." I called out.

And out stepped not only Sasuke, but, surprise surprise, Naruto as well.

"It's bullshit, isn't it, Takuma?" Sasuke said. Now how rude. He didn't add a single suffix. Very, very rude. Ah well, never-mind that...

I was silent for a moment, staring at the ground between Sasuke and Naruto and me. Then I said, "No. It's true. Itachi loved you-"

"_Bullshit_! He doesn't love me! He killed my father, killed my mother! He tortured me! If he loved me why did he do that, why? _Why_?" Sasuke screamed.

Both I and Naruto was silent, though Naruto was more silent in shock at seeing his friend lose his composure.

Then I gave a soft smile, "Because he wanted you to hate him."

"Why?" Sasuke sniffled, drying his eyes with the sleeve of his black suit.

"Because he wanted you to grow strong, strong enough to kill him, in order to clear the Uchiha name."

Sasuke was silent, suddenly finding the ground beneath his feet interesting. Naruto clapped Sasuke on his back in consolation, yet there was no reaction from him.

All of a sudden I saw a kunai being thrown at my feet.

Oh shit.

"_Dynamic Entry_!"

Gai all of a sudden, out of nowhere, slammed into my jaw heel first. Dammit, if it weren't for my chakra hardening my body my bones would have been grounded to dust by Gai's kick.

I was bodily thrown through a window and landed hard on the floor in the house.

Damn, that hurt! Fucking Gai!

So after a lot of apologizing from Gai, and with Jiraya's arrival, Sasuke was escorted back to Konoha by Gai.

And the search for Tsunade continued.

* * *

><p>Naruto had showed Jiraya the Rasengan and his ability to use it with one hand. In short, it had amazed Jiraya to no possible end that Naruto had mastered the non-elemental Rasengan within a week. Really, it had amazed me as well, but I dealt with it, because honestly? It had taken me an entire month to master the non-elemental Rasengan, but when I had mastered it, it took less than a week to get the elemental Rasengan down. If my progression of mastering the Rasengan was anything to go by, well... let me just say that Naruto would become at least a Jounin level at the end of the training trip, Kage level at most.<p>

Jiraya was at first suspicious of how come I knew the Rasengan. After all, it was an A-class jutsu, one that no one should know, other than Jiraya, Kakashi and the late Minato, and now Naruto. But I managed to convince him that I had 'seen' it. That I knew it because of my 'clairvoyance'. And Jiraya, being Jiraya, had fallen for it. Of course, I was sort of a clairvoyant, since I knew what would happen, but hey, Shinji Takuma takes it as it comes!

The battle between Akatsuki and me and Jiraya and Naruto was two and a half weeks ago. So that means that Tsunade would be found soon.

We had rented a hotel room once again, and this time, the town we were in was, surprise surprise, Tanzaku Quarters, the place where Tsunade would be found. You could see the Tanzaku Castle from the window.

I'd have to make sure Orochimaru wouldn't destroy the castle.

I liked it.


	14. Fighting The Snake Of Snakes

I entered the Tanzaku Castle.

It was a truly magnificent castle. Its shogi doors were of very, very high quality, heck, everything was of excellent quality in the castle. The steps were made of shiny white marble, the wall made of wood with intricate patterns depicting ancient tales of great battles between good and evil.

I was absolutely stunned by it.

And to think that Orochimaru would barbarically destroy such a beautiful place! The nerve!

I looked around. I was currently situated in a hall with some people occupying it. I think it was a hall for relaxing, because its entire roof was a single pane of glass, showcasing the sunny weather.

If Orochimaru even _thinks _of destroying such a magnificent place, I will pummel him so hard into the ground he'd forget what a snake was.

I walked out the hall to the outside. The outside was maze of walls with pale orange roof tiles, but thankfully, I had a map. They dealt out maps for the confused or the newcomers. I was one of them. The newcomers, that is. I wasn't confused.

I looked around. Yes, this looked like the place where Orochimaru would meet Tsunade. Tsunade would break-

I heard a rumbling sound, similar to what one would expect from crumbling buildings.

Oh no he didn't!

I raced towards the sound, enhancing my legs with chakra to give me an extra boost in speed. I jumped up on the wall to see what was going on, and lo and behold, there was a gigantic snake worming its way through the walls. On top of the grey coloured snake was Orochimaru and his butt-fellow, Kabuto. Damn I hate those guys! They are twisted in every sense of the word, thinking only of themselves and no one else! Well, not really Kabuto, he thinks only of having Orochimaru's unmentionables in somewhere where the sun doesn't shine.

I ran towards the snake and jumped high into the air.

Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram. "Summoning Technique!" I yelled. I stretched out my hand and out came strings of black coloured seals made out of pure chakra. The strings of seals formed a circle, and then in a puff of smoke came a giant green chameleon with Rinnegan eyes and piercings all over its body. The chameleon quickly turned around and opened its mouth, and I jumped into it. The chameleon once again turned around to face the snake.

Inside the mouth of the chameleon I once again summoned something. It was a small messenger toad, quite similar to Gamakichi but with green spots on it. "Quickly, send a message to Jiraya of the Sannin! Orochimaru is in Tanzaku Castle searching for Tsunade and I need his help!"

"Roger, sir, roger!" the toad saluted, which looked kind of hilarious, and hastily jumped out of the chameleon to relay the message to Jiraya.

Okay, now to play the stalling game.

I mentally ordered the chameleon to disguise itself as I stepped out on the edge of its mouth. I once again stretched out my hands, but this time, I summoned the giant rhino. The black and grey rhino charged against the snake, surprising it and slamming into its side, effectively tearing it apart, killing it. It disappeared in a plume of white smoke. Before Orochimaru and Kabuto could recognize its eyes I had dispelled it and stepped back into the mouth of the chameleon. I chuckled.

I mentally commanded the chameleon to step closer to the two snakes. It opened its mouth as I commanded, and I looked at Orochimaru. Kabuto was about to yell out to me, but with a gesture from Orochimaru's head, Kabuto stopped.

"So, the Hokage's lapdog has arrived. For what purpose are you here, you wretched servant of the false Will of Fire?" the snake Sannin hissed.

I rose an eyebrow and smirked, "Isn't it obvious? I am here to stop you!" I said, finishing my sentence with jumping out of the chameleon's mouth, dispelling it in the process.

I landed close to the snakes, smirking all the way. "I know you can't use your arms, you filthy person. It's all thanks to the Third Hokage, isn't it?"

Orochimaru growled in frustration. I was right, after all. Orochimaru's arms were in a state of necrosis from lack of a soul for the arms, but even with his arms disabled, he was still a major threat. He could still use chakra to enhance his strength in his legs and torso to do combat.

"Kabuto!" Orochimaru hissed to his butt-servant.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto practically chanted, and activated his chakra scalpels.

I withheld my smirk, "Ah yes! Let us not forget the ever-present worshipper of Orochimaru, Kabuto Yakushi! How come Orochimaru's dick isn't in your ass right now? I am wondering about that," I teased, scratching my chin in mock confusion.

Kabuto's eye twitched in annoyance, "You do not insult Orochimaru-sama like that, scum!" Kabuto charged at me. Ha! Fool didn't even deny the claim! What an idiot!

I knew that taking on a medic-nin in melee combat was damn suicide, so instead, I opted to jump backwards onto a roof of one of the thick walls. I threaded some hand seals together, Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger, "Fire Release, Fire Bullet!" I said, spewing out a great flame of white hot fire at Kabuto. I had put a lot of chakra behind it, so it was closer to the Big Fire Bullet than anything. I followed the flame by putting chakra into my legs .

Somehow Kabuto managed to jump above the great flame, but in doing so he did exactly what I wanted him to do. "Rasengan!" I slammed my finished Rasengan straight onto his stomach, tearing asunder his clothes around the area, scarring the skin with a spiralling mark, sending him off, straight to the ground next to the snarling Orochimaru.

"Had enough yet?" I stretched myself around, "There's a lot more where that came from!" I taunted. Damn is it fun to see them pissed off! It's almost as fun as being around Naruto on a good day!

"Kabuto, we're retreating. We'll find _her_ later." Orochimaru hissed to his butt-fellow. Kabuto nodded and the two immediately used shunshin to disappear from the area.

"What's going on here? Who are you?" the Castle Guards charged towards my position.

I sighed. Fucking great. They'll think it was me that did the destruction and I'll have to shunshin my way out of there. Which I did.

* * *

><p>"Where the hell were you, Jiraya?"<p>

"I was temporarily distracted, Takuma-san!"

"Yeah right! You're just trying to justify your addiction to your own perversive impulses!"

Yeah, that's right. Jiraya and I were arguing. Of all things, we were arguing. And it was right in front of a bewildered Naruto. What's next, me turning female? That wouldn't be too impossible, seeing as Orochimaru had done it before.

I sighed, "Never mind. Just make sure that it doesn't happen again!"

Jiraya sighed as well. And there was an awkward silence. For a few minutes.

Until Naruto laughed out loudly. Like, really loudly. And he even went as far as rolling on the floor, clutching his sides in pain as much as he laughed, which caused Jiraya and me to sweat drop in unison.

"What's so funny, brat?" Jiraya asked.

I crossed my arms and closed my eyes, sighing all the while. "Isn't it obvious?" I said. Jiraya looked at me questioningly, and I groaned in frustration. Both Jiraya and Naruto were incredibly dense, but Jiraya was the less perceptive when it came down to it. Probably because he didn't have the 'necessary' bad childhood to build perceptiveness over non-trivial things. See, if you have had a bad childhood, you'd most likely be more consciously perceptive over expressions such as anger, contempt and frustration. Well, that is my hypothesis, anyway.

"We're arguing like a married couple, Jiraya!" I groaned out.

And there was silence between the two of us, only interrupted regularly by Naruto's occasional snickers. His constant snickering made my eye twitch in irritation.

"Dammit, Naruto! It's not funny!" which caused another outburst of laughter from the blonde kid.

And only _then _did my words get to Jiraya. And guess what? He blushed, spluttered and got all flustered like. "N-no! Im-impossible! We do not!" he shouted indignantly.

I sighed once again, "Learn to ignore it, Jiraya. Learn to ignore it." I said, sagely nodding my head.

And my not adding in a suffix could either make it better or worse, I just knew it...

* * *

><p>I strolled around the Tanzaku Quarters' streets. I had gotten word from Jiraya, who had gotten his information through his information network, that Tsunade was around here somewhere. I was currently in a gambling district, which was to be expected of the Legendary Sucker- goddammit, I cannot not imagine that being perverted! Dammit all!<p>

Anyway, questionable nicknames aside, Tsunade was here somewhere. She had to be. I just hoped that I was lucky enough to meet her soon.

"Hey, Takuma-sensei." Naruto was behind me, and he had been following me since we had left the hotel. Something I had requested of him, just to let you know.

"Yes, Naruto?" I asked the whisker-faced kid. He would probably ask if we could go for ramen, or perhaps some dango. And I wouldn't complain, seeing as I was hungry enough for a snack.

"What kind of person is Tsunade of the Senju clan?" That question threw me in so big a loop I had to stop in my tracks. What should I say to the little guy? Should I tell him about her ludomania? Or should I tell him about her loss of her lover, Dan, and her little brother, Nawaki? Or should I tell him her appearance first? Tell him about her blond hair, her much larger than averagebreasts? Or maybe her personality? A greedy fifty year old who couldn't stand Konoha because of the sadness she had been through? What should I-

"Hey, Takuma-sensei. You spaced out again!" and thank you Naruto for breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Oh, yes, sorry!" I scratched the back of my neck, chuckling nervously. "Well, um... what do you want to know?" I asked him. What a way to start, Shinji! Why not ask the kid what to explain! I mean, I know a lot about Tsunade anyway, might as well tell him what he wants to know. Right? And if I was lucky, Tsunade might listen in on what I had to say! Hopefully, at least...

"What does she look like?" Naruto jumped to the opportunity to help in the search for Tsunade of the Sannin.

"Well," I started, "she has blonde hair that is most likely tied in two low ponytails," I began listing off the things she looked like with my fingers, "she has a green kimono top over a grey shirt, I think. She probably wears high heels on her feet," I saw Naruto briefly look behind me, but I shook it off. Probably noticed something, "I'm pretty sure she has brown eyes," once again Naruto briefly looked behind me, "and, well... um..." I scratched the back of my neck in embarrassment. How can I explain Tsunade's large breasts without sounding like a complete pervert that wanted to corrupt the minds of small children? I noticed that once again Naruto looked behind me, though this time, he waved.

"Hi, Tsunade!" he yelled boisterously.

…

Did he just-

Oh... Tsunade was behind me.

I turned around, and sure enough, I saw Tsunade behind me. And behind Tsunade was her ever-present and ever-reliable medic-nin, Shizune. She was holding onto the pale pink pig.

"W-well hello there, Tsunade-sama!" I stammered. I scratched the back of my neck. Dammit, caught! Well, it wasn't like I was describing her like Jiraya would, now. It probably saved my life, too. So I was grateful for it.

"Hn? Who are you? What do you want me for?" Tsunade questioned. Well, there are lots of things I'd want-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

Anyway, "Ah, forgive my rudeness, Tsunade-sama!" I bowed politely, "I am Shinji Takuma, at your service. A pleasure to meet someone of your reputation.". For some reason that sentence earned me a tick on Tsunade's forehead. Probably because she didn't like the title to begin with.

"Whatever! What do you want with me?" she demanded, holding a fist forward threateningly. My hands instinctively brought up in defence, in a placating manner.

"I'll be blunt," I clapped my hands together, as if preparing for a lengthy explanation, "What I 'want' with you is basically for you to become Hokage." I said plainly, gesturing at Tsunade when I said Hokage.

Another tick mark on her forehead, and a curious stare from Shizune.

"Why do you want for Tsunade-sama to become Hokage? The Third's reign is still in effect, isn't it?" Shizune asked. Naruto got visibly depressed at the sentence, which all three of us noticed. I clapped him on the shoulder encouragingly. He looked up to my smiling face.

I turned back to the two pretty women, though one of them was under a constant henge, just like me, just over different areas. "No, the Third Hokage is dead, killed by your former teammate, Orochimaru." I said bluntly.

There was silence in the entire district. Hell, you could even hear a pin drop. I swear there were dozens of people listening in to the conversation.

"Wha-what?" Shizune stammered. Tsunade was too shocked to say anything because of the fact that Hiruzen Sarutobi was dead.

* * *

><p>After I had told them about the invasion of Konoha by Suna and Oto, I had offered them some tea in a teashop of their choosing. They had chosen a relatively cheap one, but it had really good tea, I noted. I just had to come back to it! Yes, the tea was <em>that <em>good. Surprising...

"So what is this about Sarutobi-sensei being dead, Takuma-san?" Tsunade asked politely, with a bit of wavering found in her voice. It was to be expected. She had just been informed of her teacher's demise, after all.

I explained to them the circumstances of the Hokage's death, I told them about the invasion and its many events, I even told them about Naruto's epic battle with Gaara of the Desert, to which Naruto grinned sheepishly and I clapped him on his back proudly.

I also told them of the battle between the Hokage, the ANBU captain Turtle and I, and two of the resurrected Hokage. That really disgusted Tsunade and Shizune. How could someone resurrect someone already dead at the cost of another's life? It was a cowardly technique, one that should have been buried with the Second Hokage, Tsunade said. I wholly agreed to her statement.

Jiraya had soon joined in, and then our conversation went from the invasion to Tsunade becoming Hokage.

At first Tsunade had been highly reluctant, not even like in canon, where she had been mocking the position of Hokage, where she had been a real big breasted bitch. Not at all. In fact, she seemed to think that it was more like honouring the late Third.

Then I just had to open my mouth about Nawaki and Dan, both of whom desired the position of Hokage.

"Think about it this way, Tsunade-sama." Tsunade looked at me with sad eyes, "You'll be honouring Dan's and Nawaki's memory by becoming what they wanted to become!"

And I expected her reaction to be violent, not sad.

She ended up letting the tears fall through, and quietly sob her misery. Dammit, I really felt guilty pulling the 'dead person' card here. But her presence in Konoha was needed for the continued survival of both Chouji and Neji in the near future.

And then, she ended up agreeing. We didn't fight, we didn't argue, she just said yes. It was weird, because she had mocked the position of Hokage after Nawaki's and Dan's death.

She chose to believe in the Will of Fire once more.

She offered me her necklace, too. But I politely declined the kind offer, and insisted she place her faith in Naruto instead. That surprised both Naruto and Tsunade, and it took some convinced to get them to agree with it. Though when Tsunade decided to give Naruto her necklace she even smiled to Naruto and kissed him on his forehead. Naruto blushed a deep red, at both the kiss and the massive cleavage he had in his vision.

Damn lucky guy...

* * *

><p>I looked to my right. I saw Naruto quietly napping on his futon in the hotel room, and beside him was Jiraya, also sleeping as well. To my left was Shizune sleeping in a futon of her own. I noticed that Tsunade was outside on the balcony, leaning on the railing and watching the beautiful full moon.<p>

I walked outside to keep Tsunade company. "Couldn't sleep?" I asked her.

She shook her head. There was silence for a while, quite a while, which got me thinking a bit.

This hadn't happened in canon, either. Tsunade was supposed to disagree with both Naruto and Jiraya about her attaining the position of Hokage. Hell, she was quite violent about it. But why was she so compliant now? I expected her to be violent, hell, I was prepared for a fight! Albeit I know it'd be a short fight. I think it was high time I asked her about it.

"So, Tsunade-sama..." I began. Tsunade broke off her stare at the moon to look at me, though she was still leaning on the railing, "What made you agree so hastily with you becoming Hokage? It doesn't really fit you." I asked curiously.

Tsunade sighed and turned her gaze back to the moon. Once again she was silent. But she contemplated, I saw. My guess was that she was thinking about what had compelled her to say yes to the proposition.

Then she began talking, "I don't know. I just don't know what made me say yes. It..." she hesitated, "It felt like something was gently forcing me to agree. I don't know what it was."

Forcing her? That wasn't good. There are a multitude of things that can influence the decisions of people. Such as genjutsu. Here's hoping no one was interfering in my quest to bring the world of Naruto to complete peace. Hopefully not Madara. Dammit, I am already jinxing it!

"Just one question, Tsunade-sama." I looked at her with a determined and serious expression, "Do you regret it? Because no one is forcing you to become Hokage. If you don't want to, someone else can."

Tsunade stared wide-eyed at me. But after a moment she closed her eyes and sighed. Then she smiled genuinely, "No, I don't regret it."

I smiled back, "Good. Then I have something to tell you, since you're going to be Hokage and all."

She looked at me in curiousness.

I disabled the henge on my eyes, "I have the legendary doujutsu of the Sage of the Six Paths."

I smirked triumphantly at her stunned expression. Her body language clearly radiated shock and wonder, mixed with medical curiousness. Well, it's what I guessed was medical, but it was definitely curiousness. Or I think it was. It might have been something else, but alas, who cares.

I heard something hiss in the background, "Yes," it drawled, "There you are... Shinji Takuma!"

I swiftly turned around to face...

Orochimaru and his butt-fellow on a car-sized snake.

Fuck me...

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Okay, so there is a small rewrite at the end. And I admit, I rushed this chapter.

Oh, and don't expect an update for the next few days. I have Aspergers syndrome. That means a lot of things, one of them meaning that if I have lost interest in something I most likely won't do it. Or something. But don't expect me to abandon it, either. For I will never! Or my username be not HTM!


	15. Second Encounter

I immediately put as much chakra as I can behind a "Shinra Tensei!", sending Orochimaru and his fellow snakes off to who knows where. His snake disappeared in a large plume of smoke due to the wind damage tearing its skin apart.

I turned to Tsunade, "Follow me, Tsunade-sama! We have to deal with Orochimaru while he is still here!" I told her hastily.

I once again turned around and enhanced a kunai with wind chakra and threw it towards Orochimaru. The kunai I threw had my Flying Thunder God technique towards Orochimaru's position. The wind chakra enhanced the kunai's flying speed and its aerodynamics so that it flew as far as possible.

As soon as the kunai landed I grabbed onto Tsunade's arm and used my Hiraishin, leaving in a flash of light purple light.

And I didn't know that I had forgotten to take Naruto with me.

* * *

><p>Tsunade and I landed on the ground beside the Hiraishin kunai. I noticed that we were in a clearing far away from Tanzaku Quarters, thankfully. I immediately jumped three feet away from the initial position and I flew through a few hand seals. "Summoning Technique!" I yelled, slamming my hand down onto the ground and imagining the symbols threading themselves into several circles.<p>

The result was a sudden thrust up towards the air, and a yell of "What in the world? I was sleeping here!" from Gamabunta that could without a doubt be heard in the Tanzaku Quarters. Curiously he was wearing a white kimono of some sorts. Probably for sleeping. Dammit, I hoped he would put a challenge again-

"Gamabunta-sama! I apologize for the intrusion but I seriously need your help on this one!" I pleaded. Shit, I thought the summons world was different in that it was never night. Oh well, thankfully he still had his sword.

"What the-? Takuma!" Gamabunta looked up to his head, somehow. Once again, I don't know how he did it! How in the world can someone look at what's on their heads? The phenomenon baffles me even now.

Tsunade had done the same thing as me, though jumping farther away from me to summon the slug boss, Katsuyu.

Orochimaru had in turn summoned Manda, and had a discussion about sacrifices with him.

"Orochimaru? Dammit, kid, you owe me sake for this!" Gamabunta said loudly enough to once again be heard in Tanzaku.

"Sure thing, just help me out in this, Gamabunta-sama!" I said back to him. I sweat dropped. Must all boss summons require some sort of sacrifice to use them? I should have summoned one of the Rinnegan's personal summons. That would leave out a lot of the confusion. Dammit, I am getting side-tracked, here!

I turned my gaze towards Orochimaru's summons. It was, frankly speaking, quite scary. Manda's purple scales and its horns weren't helping.

And Katsuyu? I turned to look at Tsunade's boss summon. Katsuyu looked as non-threatening as any other slug. Which is to say, she looked very pacifying. Almost made me not want to hurt her at all. And it wasn't like I was going to, either.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road! Gamabunta-sama! Distract Manda while I deal with Orochimaru!" I gestured towards Manda.

"Of course!" Gamabunta said loudly. He jumped up, drawing his sword to slash at Manda.

Of course Manda dodged the first slashes and stabs, along with the occasional spat venom from Katsuyu. Manda sure as hell was a tough boss summon, evading each and every attempt to hurt himself.

Meanwhile us humans had jumped down to engage in our own combat, leaving the boss summons to their own squabble.

"Tsunade-sama, do you think you can manage Kabuto on your own? Or do you want to deal with Orochimaru?" I asked tenderly. I don't know why, though. I guess it's because she was old enough to be my mother at that point. I never was good at dealing with old people. I always angered, saddened or frustrated them for some reason. Oh well!

"I'll take care of Orochimaru. You take care of Kabuto!" she said sternly, never breaking eye-contact with Orochimaru.

I nodded in response. I understood her reasons, too. Orochimaru was Tsunade's former teammate, after all. It was quite a sad predicament, once you think about it, right? Yes, yes it was.

I walked behind Tsunade to face Kabuto. I tilted my head forwards to look slightly intimidating. Which I failed drastically. Pathetic, dammit! Why couldn't I intimidate without looking pathetic, or as a wannabe!

See, even Kabuto, Orochimaru's butt-fellow, was smirking at me! With that 'I-art-superior-than-thou' smirk!

No! Pull yourself together, Shinji! Don't confuse 'I-art-superior-than-thou' smirks for 'I-art-taunting-thou' smirks!

I smirked at my scatter-brained thoughts, but my smirk vanished like the dust in the wind a moment later. I didn't care about Shippuden canon right now, I wanted Kabuto to die for resurrecting all those people in the Fourth Shinobi World War. Most of them deserved peace! I say most of them because I cannot be certain someone had done something bad in their life. Like Zabuza. Though he _did _deserve his peace with his effeminate subordinate, Haku.

"Ready to die, Kabuto Yakushi?" I said. I looked at him as if he were something less than human. Which he was, technically speaking. I mean, he would _implant _Orochimaru's genes or whatever into him so that he could resemble him some more. Enhance himself, if you will. Thus become less than human in my eyes. Orochimaru was after all the snake of snakes.

"That is not the question, Takuma-san," Kabuto pushed his Harry Potter wannabe glasses further up his nose, "The question is-"

Kabuto used shunshin to get close to me. He had his chakra scalpels activated, and he was damn fast, for a nineteen or twenty year old. The only reason I wasn't headless right then and there was because of my purple version of Minato Namikaze's Hiraishin. Now I stood about twenty feet away from him, enough time for me to thread a few hand seals together.

Which I did.

Horse, Tiger, "Fire Release, Grand Fireball Technique!" I yelled out. I poured lots of chakra into the fire release jutsu, effectively making a fireball the size of Gamabunta.

I went through another set of hand seals, Dragon, Boar, Tiger, Monkey, Tiger. I stood, prepared for Kabuto to come out unharmed from the flames.

Wait...

Who's to say he would come from the flames? He could just as well come from under the ground!

I turned my head downwards, and sure enough, I saw a small indention in the ground that gradually became bigger quite quickly.

"Lighting release, False Darkness!" I said, shooting out three spears of lightning out of my mouth directly downwards. Since Lightning defeats Earth, for some reason or other, the lightning from False Darkness was unhindered in its descent down. And sure enough, I somehow felt the impact to Kabuto's body. Probably because the lightning was from my manifested chakra.

Kabuto got up from the ground about ten feet away from me. I noticed that he was healing his left shoulder as it was bleeding. He was panting heavily, probably from the shock he got from the lightning release jutsu.

Kabuto panted, "Well, I didn't expect that." he smirked that damnable smirk. Curse him to hell for that smirk alone! I _hate _it when evil guys smirk like that! It always makes my eye twitch in irritation! Just like Aizen from Bleach! That damned smirk that can make the smallest of innocent children cry out for their mother! Well, I'm going to make Kabuto _wish _he had a loving mother to save him!

And sure enough, my eye twitched.

"You would serve as the perfect specimen for high chakra requirement experiments." Kabuto said. My eye twitched again. I'm going to _fucking _wipe that smirk off his face soon!

I stretched out my hand towards Kabuto, who looked at me curiously, like he wanted to dissect me on a, well, dissecting table.

I was getting tired of my eye twitching! Stop it already, eye! Dammit, it did it again! I rubbed my eye. It was probably some kind of bad habit now. Here's hoping it wasn't. Because it was seriously beginning to grind my gears.

In my distraction Kabuto had charged at me. He didn't know that that would be his doom.

I noticed it. "Bansho Ten'in." I whispered, though it was loud enough that Kabuto could hear it.

As a result of my jutsu, Kabuto flew towards me head-first. I planted my had on top of his head.

And I threw his body away with my other hand, his soul attached to my hand.

I took out my trusty scroll set, as in, ink pot that sort of looked like Gaara's gourd, just miniature, a brush and, oh, and fancy that, a scroll!

I quickly wrote a complex series of seals down and sealed off Kabuto's soul in the same scroll both the First Hokage and the Second Hokage were sealed inside.

I looked to the fight between Orochimaru and Tsunade. The battlefield was littered with smaller craters, without a doubt caused by Tsunade's fearsome and infamous super strength. There was one large crater the size of a small bus right where Orochimaru's body lay still, with Tsunade hunched over it.

And there was a large white snake with a black mane of hair right close by, with it made out of multiple white snakes.

Did Orochimaru just-

I felt something large slam into my right side, sending me away a large distance, breaking two or three of my ribs.

I landed on the ground hard, right beside Tsunade. I had my eyes closed and was groaning in pain. Thankfully I was able to enhance my bone structure with chakra before I engaged in a fight with Kabuto, so I really had only about three broken ribs. Apply a bit of chakra, and-

Snap!

Ouch! It hurt, but at least the bones are back in place. I looked over to where I was not four seconds ago, and I saw a gigantic bandaged _something _I immediately identified as Samehada, with its wielder Kisame Hoshigaki holding it like he had just made a good swing. He had a mad grin on his face, without a doubt excited for the prospect of a good battle with another tailless Tailed Beast.

And where Kisame was was Itachi Uchiha.

And sure enough, there stood Itachi Uchiha, his Sharingan glaring at me.

They were not alone.

Beside Kisame was the hunched back form of the Hiruko puppet. Without a doubt containing Sasori of the Red Sand. Next to Sasori of the Red Sand was Deidara of the Rock, who was preparing for battle. Or I thought he was prepared, since he had his hands in those bags of his. Probably where he had his clay. Deidara wasn't exactly my favourite Akatsuki person. Though he did die awesomely.

Dammit! I hoped that I wouldn't have attracted the attention of Akatsuki when I had battled them one and a half weeks ago!

Enough complaining, time to kick some Akatsuki ass!

I jumped up to avoid a swing from Kisame, only to see a clay bird coming for me, fast. "Shinra Tensei!" I stretched out a hand for the clay bird to fly back to my intended target, Deidara.

Of course it did not explode as a result, it just flew back.

Anyway, so I applied chakra to my legs, enabling me to jump backwards. And it was a considerable distance, too.

"So, you really do have the Rinnegan, hm?" Deidara said, ending his sentence with his standard verbal tic. I think it's an unintentional verbal tic as well, but I couldn't be sure.

"What of it? Does your _leader _want it? I thought he already had it!" I taunted. I went through a couple of hand seals, making myself ready for combat. I channelled some chakra through my bones, making sure they wouldn't get broken when hit.

"Nothin', just surprised, hm." Deidara replied, raising an eyebrow to my apparent hostility. Come to think of it, it surprised me as well.

Deidara quickly made a large bird out of exploding clay and jumped on it. The bird flew up enough to be out of reach from the standard mid ranged jutsu. Which is to say about fifty feet up in the air. He ascended very quickly, too. Quicker than the average helicopter. That's quick! Too bad I can't steal that bloodline. Ha! As if!

Sasori opted to stay back. Observing me, without a doubt. And because he didn't want his precious hunched back puppet Hiruko to get exterminated.

Kisame hoisted his Samehada sword onto his shoulder, looking quite intimidating. I say! I bet that he would taste magnificent as a meal.

And Itachi just glared at me at his position at Sasori's side. He probably told them about my Rinnegan, which honestly didn't surprise me. I even anticipated it, you could say, what with him being an Uchiha and all. Traitorous scum, every single one of them, apparently. Yeah, I don't like the Uchiha. Just because they have their damned eyes does not mean they can just copy every single move! It makes them, ironically enough, blind to their own arrogance, I say!

Dammit, I'm getting scatter-brained here!

Anyway, Kisame charged at me with his Samehada ready to strike. I jumped backwards, probably expected, seeing as I had a ton of clay birds flying at me at the moment. I once again used Shinra Tensei to repel the clay birds. The shockwave from Samehada crashing into the ground created a crater the size of a small car and sent me sliding across the earth, sending up dust and debris across.

I jumped up, channelling Wind chakra around my entire body, allowing me to literally float in mid-air. I looked around, and sure enough, Deidara was charging at me on top of his bird. I just decided to end it quickly with Deidara.

I stretched my hand out and said, "Bansho Ten'in.". As a result from my jutsu Deidara was flung off his bird and rushed towards me, almost as if something was pushing towards me, in contrast of something pulling him instead.

I did a split second decision about Deidara's future. I decided that he shouldn't die. I instead of laying my hand on his head, I clenched my hand, making it a fist. To add insult to injury I enhanced both my muscles and my bones with some extra chakra. Damn, it was almost as if I was made out of chakra, as much as I had.

And the result was stunning.

If I hadn't enhanced my bones with chakra I was sure I would have had a broken arm, and probably also a shoulder. As for Deidara, well... He was thankfully only knocked unconscious. He was sent flying towards the spot of which Itachi and Sasori occupied, both of them stepping aside as to not get hit.

Now I only had to deal with Kisame.

I turned, but there was no Kisame in sight. I turned again and again, but I only saw Tsunade still hunched over Orochimaru's body with that large snake with black hair beside them, and Sasori's puppet Hiruko along with Itachi. Frankly speaking, it was starting to creep me out. Even the summons were gone. Manda, Gamabunta, Katsuyu. It made everything eerily still. I looked up, but there was no descending Kisame, ready to chop me to bits with his sword-that-shaves. Seriously, I just can't get over that! Sword-that-shaves! Honestly! I let out a small laugh that distracted me from the incoming threat from below.

And I looked down to face the big bandaged Samehada slamming into my chin. Damn that hurt like hell! All my nerves from neck-and-up were filled with the excruciating pain from getting the fucking sword-that-shaves grounded into my chin!

I was flung off twenty meters away. Thankfully I managed to look past the pain and twist around to land gracefully on the ground. I was bleeding slightly from my mouth, so I wiped the blood away with my arm.

"Shit, I guess I should have seen that one coming." I prepared for a fight with another tailless Tailed Beast. I did a cross hand seal, spawning hundreds of Kage Bunshin. If my estimates were correct, it'd be about three hundred and forty two Kage Bunshin I had created.

"Go!" I commanded for the shadow clones to charge against the fish dude. To distract Kisame for as long as possible, you see.

I immediately jumped as far back as I could, and took out my sealing equipment. I dipped my brush into my ink pot and pressed the brush lightly onto the scroll, drawing an intricate series of seals on top of the paper.

I noticed that my shadow clones began to be whittled down after a few minutes of distraction. Dammit, I had hoped for a few more minutes of distraction would do! So in order to compensate I had to create a few more hundred shadow clones. And that distracted _me_ from my sealing works! I had planned to seal off a lot of chakra off from Kisame, so that I didn't have to fight a tailless Tailed Beast!

A split second after I had finished creating the shadow clones I began to do the finishing touches upon the sealing art. There was a seal for sealing off seventy five percent of the chakra of the person it is applied to, and as an extra bonus I sealed off the ability to take off the seal off of the person. Thus the seal could not be taken off without a ridiculous amount of complex seal work. Thank goodness that I had soaked up the how seals worked, and works of the Sealing Art as a whole, like a sponge! Or else I'd be in serious trouble right now! Like Anko wouldn't have been free from the wretched snake that was lying not thirty metres away from my position! That would have earned be a serious ass-pounding, courtesy of previously mentioned woman. That woman is scary, she is...

Anyway, I ripped the seal off the scroll, and prepared to battle the tailless Tailed Beast Samehada wielder head-on.

I saw an opening as Kisame slashed open a shadow clone's white kimono and flesh, effectively dispelling it in a puff of smoke. The swing was what left him open, as I charged up a Rasengan enhanced with Water natured chakra. I pushed my legs further than they had been pushed before, improving the muscles of my legs with chakra.

As an extra distraction I made all my shadow clones charge up a Water natured Rasengan in both hands, just to add more confusion in the already confusing battlefield.

"Time to wrap this up," all my clones declared at the same time, "Kisame Hoshigaki!"

And then I, as in all my hundreds of shadow clones and me, charged head-first towards the sword-that-shaves wielder.


	16. Mind Walking

I saw through one of my clones' eyes that Kisame was beginning to become distracted from the nearly endless flow of shadow clones. Good, that is exactly what I had planned. Him creating an opening from getting tired from redundantly parrying, dodging and blocking all the time.

Finally, after what had seemed like hours, which was actually just seconds, Kisame had an opening. It was a small opening, but it was enough for me to slap the seal onto his forehead.

The real me charged ahead, Kisame's back turned to me. I managed to somehow turn him around by grabbing his shoulder. I quickly put the seal on his forehead and after that, I slammed my Water natured Rasengan into his stomach.

In a great shout of pain Kisame was sent off right next to the rest of his fellow Akatsuki members. He landed right next to Itachi in a heap of blue coloured flesh and bones.

I chanced a look back at Tsunade. She was still hunched over Orochimaru's body. That big snake beside her began to really nudge a part of my memory, for some reason. It was as if I was forgetting something. Something really, really important.

I shelved the thought. It wouldn't do to be distracted in such a critical hour, now, would it?

"What the hell! What did you do?" Kisame said out loudly. I noticed that he could barely hold Samehada up. Probably because he had been using chakra to enhance his muscles.

I smirked smugly, "I sealed off a portion of your chakra, Kisame Hoshigaki." Kisame glared at me with so much hatred that it was almost scary. Almost.

Kisame reached up to his forehead and tried to rip off the seal. To no avail. The seal held on for dear life, if it had any, and just would_ not _let go. It needed seals master to take it off, and I wouldn't extend the courtesy of telling the sword-that-shaves wielder. It take out the fun of it!

Nevertheless, I saw Sasori's Hiruko puppet tense up. He probably thought that I would attack soon. With Deidara out cold, and Kisame out of commission, only Itachi and Sasori were available for combat. And it wouldn't be pretty, that was for sure.

I took a look back to Tsunade again. She was still hunched over Orochimaru's body, and the large snake that was made out of a multitude of white snakes was still there. I didn't have the time to think about it. At least not yet. So I guess it was time to come up with a truce. Or at least to say something that would spruce up the idea of a temporary pause in the fighting so I could determine what was wrong with Tsunade.

"Hold up!" I said aloud, stretching out a hand. Both Itachi and Sasori in his Hiruko puppet tensed up.

I turned around quickly, the ends of my kimono billowing in the wind. Damn dramatic, I thought. I thought it just made me cool like that!

I stepped closer to Tsunade's form and Orochimaru's body. I kneeled next to Tsunade and put a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong, Tsunade-sama?" I asked hesitantly. I mean, there were thousands of possibilities playing out on my mind right at that moment. What if Tsunade saw some blood? She has hemophobia, after all! The fear of blood. Though it isn't as extreme as it could have been. She does not faint when she sees blood and does not puke when she sees blood. It could have been so much worse, yes.

Tsunade was still. It was unnerving, really. I shook her shoulder a bit, "Tsunade-sama? Tsunade-sama? Are you alright?" I asked urgently. Something must be seriously wrong if Tsunade would not answer after shaking her up a bit. I looked around, but I saw no blood, none at all. Orochimaru was down for the count, that-

Then it clicked.

A snake, made out of a multitude of white snakes, with a mane of black hair?

Orochimaru down for the count?

Tsunade completely still?

Don't say-

I paused for a while. No, that couldn't be! Tsunade was supposed to become the Fifth Hokage of Konoha! She wouldn't die from something as pathetic as being possessed by Orochimaru! She was a freaking Sannin! Of course she wouldn't die! What in the world caused me to think about that, anyway?

I shook my head. While I knew that Tsunade wouldn't be possessed by Orochimaru, I knew that Tsunade would have to have help pushing Orochimaru out of her mind.

I had to help! Somehow!

Then once again, it clicked. I just, somehow, knew, that I really _could _help Tsunade. And not through some complicated jutsu or some complex seal or something. I could help her with the Rinnegan! It was said that the Rinnegan is the predecessor of _all _bloodlines! What was to say that I couldn't go to the mind of someone else's and do something, like how the Sharingan could? What was to say I couldn't use techniques specific for a single bloodline-

That is for another time, Shinji! Not now! Tsunade needs you!

So, I stepped in front of Tsunade, and I grabbed hold of both her shoulders. And I looked straight into her eyes and I channelled chakra through my eyes, and I imagined my own chakra going from my mind, through my eyes, and then going to Tsunade's mind and back again, from Tsunade's mind, through my eyes, and then back to my mind.

And it worked.

Suddenly I found myself inside an unfinished clockwork tower. It was humongous, the tower. The large bell tolled, but there was no one pulling the string that was attached to the bell. I was on some scaffolding, with various equipment scattered about, ladders going from one scaffolding to another. I looked outside the clock tower, but all I saw was emptiness, blackness. No stars adorning the night sky above, no street lights decorating streets below, nothing. It was chilling. Why in the world did Tsunade have such a peculiar inner world? Why have only blackness outside the bell tower? Why in the whole wide world would she not have something so alarmingly spooky? I mean, there was no one holding the rope connected to the tolling bell!

I couldn't waste time searching for a reason to an inner world. There was no time. I had to find Tsunade before it was too late.

Thankfully I somehow knew my way around the inner world. It wasn't like it was difficult either. Sometimes I saw doors, and I had opened them, only for them to lead to private moments of Tsunade's life. Times she had definitely enjoyed with Dan, her lover. Like the fourth door I had opened, where she, Dan and Nawaki were together, celebrating Nawaki's ninth birthday. Or the ninth door, where she and Dan were strolling in a park, holding hands. The lower I got, the more intimate the memories got, the more explicit ones I immediately shut the doors of.

And finally, after the twenty sixth door, I reached the bottom of the clockwork tower. I opened the last door, one that was curiously enough adorned with golden intricacies, and various other gold coloured markings depicting various things I had seen in the other doors. I opened the door and stepped inside. The room was completely bare, walls made out of boring red bricks and grey mortar, no furniture whatsoever. However, inside, I found a crying and old Tsunade. It was strange, seeing an old Tsunade. Her skin was tanned, with a few wrinkles adorning her body. She was huddled to the far corner of the room, hugging her knees and burying her face in them. It was a sad look, in the end.

One that I would definitely fix for her!

I stepped closer to her, only for an arm to block off my approach. My eyes travelled up the arm, only to find Orochimaru.

He was also looking old. His skin was pale, he still had those purple markings around his eyes and down the sides of his nose, his eyes were still slitted and glowing an ominous yellow, his hair was still a slick colour of black, but he looked completely different. He had wrinkles all over his face and body, and a line of black was seeping from his hairline down all the way to his chin. My guess was that it was a scar.

"Let her cry it out." Orochimaru said gently, though his voice, despite the hissing, had taken a tone for the worse. It was growling, almost. As if he were getting older and older by the second.

His voice, nor his appearance, wasn't what caught me off guard. His words were. Why in the world would the snake Sannin want his fellow Sannin want to cry? Why in the world not attack her while she was weak? He had to have an ulterior motive to this! He was Orochimaru of the Sannin! The most cunning snake of the cunning snakes! He gives snakes a bad name, he does!

I frowned deeply, "Why? Are you concerned for her well-being?" I muttered sarcastically, not wanting to disturb the temporary peace between the three of us.

Orochimaru frowned back towards me, hissing, "Of course not! I just don't want to attack someone when they are at their weakest!" he snapped at me quietly.

That... actually made some sense. He attacked Konoha when they were at their strongest, when they had the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki in their ranks, when he without a doubt knew that Jiraya was there as well. Jiraya was a Sannin, comparable to Orochimaru in strength, skill and experience. And with the Third Hokage, despite him not being in his prime, was still a major force to be reckoned with. And he probably knew he would still lose to Konoha. He only wanted Sasuke's body and his Sharingan to begin with.

Though I disregarded those little facts, I smirked slightly, "Oh really, now? Who knew you were this soft for your teammates? I didn't know, I thought you had cut all ties with them." I said tauntingly. If anything, I wanted to make Orochimaru snap a bit, make him angry. I, once again somehow, knew he couldn't do anything in another's inner world. Probably because the Rinnegan was feeding me bits and pieces necessary knowledge. I didn't know how it did it, but it did. I think...

Orochimaru glared at me, but dropped his arm and snapped his gaze back to Tsunade when she gave off a particularly nasty sob. I, too, snapped my head to Tsunade after having that glaring contest with Orochimaru.

We both stood in some form of comfortable silence as we let Tsunade cry her sorrows out. I sneaked a look at Orochimaru, and I don't think I'll ever forget that sad look on his face. He had lost all maliciousness from it, replaced with a look of pure and utter sorrow.

Peculiar as it was, I think he really did have _some _remorse for Tsunade's losses of her loved ones. He was, after all, partly to blame. Especially since he had been encouraging Tsunade to heal his arms after offering to resurrect her dear loved ones, Nawaki, her little brother, and Dan Kato, her lover, not a few weeks ago.

I outwardly sighed at the situation. How come Orochimaru was sad here? Was he not a sadistic bastard hell-bent on learning all the techniques that exist? Then why is he sad at Tsunade's misery? It was confusing, to say the very least. I decided to disregard Orochimaru's words. I seriously wanted to comfort Tsunade in her plight.

Orochimaru gave out a startled noise that sounded suspiciously like a grunt, "What are you doing, you fool?"

"I'm doing what you cannot do," I advanced a step closer towards Tsunade, "Be there for someone!" I growled back at him without looking at him.

When I reached her I immediately held her in a tight embrace and stroke her back. Tsunade's sobs stopped completely, her eyes wide open in surprise from the surprise hug. "Wha-what are you d-doing?" Tsunade sobbed, "I-I'm not-"

I stopped her from talking by tightening my hold on her, "Don't even think about finishing that sentence, Tsunade-sama," I released my hold on her only to grab her shoulders and look directly into her eyes with my own, "Who are you?" I asked, my voice carrying an urgent tone to it.

Tsunade hesitated, "I-I'm Tsunade..."

I shook her shoulders, "Damn right!" I said loudly, "And not only that!" I shook her shoulders again, "You're Tsunade Senju! Tsunade Senju of the freaking Sannin!" I bellowed, frowning heavily with, not disgust, but with concentration. My eyes were beginning to strain now. I didn't have much time!

"You're not only Tsunade Senju of the Sannin!" I said loudly, determined to get Tsunade out of her sadness induced reverie.

"Who am I?" Tsunade said, though I noted that it was with more confidence, more like how it should be. Anger filled, frustrated, so Tsunade like.

"You're Tsunade Senju, the Fifth Hokage of Konoha!" I cried out. It was time for Tsunade to get out of her mind, to get back to reality and not live in the past.

"Who are you?" I said aloud once again.

"I'm Tsunade Senju." she said, brimming with determination now.

"Who are you?" I said, louder than the last time.

"I'm Tsunade Senju of the Sannin!" she said, now overflowing with conviction.

"Who are you?" I vociferated.

"I'm Tsunade Senju, Fifth Hokage of Konoha!" she yelled out, standing up and fist-bumping the air. Then she pointed at me dramatically and said, "And don't you forget it!"

I chuckled, "Oh, I won't."

Then I felt a pull in the back of my mind.

And then I was back in the real world.

"Well, as entertaining it was to stay, I have to go now." I heard someone say behind me. I looked back just in time to see Orochimaru use shunshin to get away from us. I smirked. He didn't want to admit it, but he still hadn't cut ties with Konoha completely. What a big softie. I chuckled.

I turned back to face Tsunade, and she was staring at me in wonder. "What was that?" she asked after she saw that she held my attention.

I grinned and rubbed the back of my neck, "Sorry, I had to do it to pull you out." I said hesitantly. I hope that she wasn't pissed off! It would spell bad stuff for me!

Tsunade sighed and shook her head, "I don't mind, just give me a fair warning next time!" and then she bopped me on the head. Hard enough that if I hadn't enhanced my bone structure with chakra I'd have had some serious cracks on my skull!

I rubbed my head, "Ouch." I said pathetically.

But then I turned serious and stood up. Tsunade followed up and turned to see the Akatsuki, with Kisame still struggling to hold up Samehada. Dammit, I can't think about Samehada without thinking 'sword-that-shaves'! Honestly! What's so wrong with slicing! Like the Great Beheader sword, or whatever, the one Zabuza has! Nothing! There's nothing wrong with slicing! But _no_, he just _has _to have a sword that shaves instead of slice. There is nothing wrong with slicing! Slicing is cooler than shaving!

I shook my head to clear my scatter-brained head. "That's right. There's still the Akatsuki to deal with. I forgot that." I once again sweat-dropped and rubbed the back of my neck, though it had a much more serious tone to it.

Tsunade sighed, "Seems like wherever I go there is trouble not far away." Well no shit, Sherlock! This is the Naruto universe, where there are ninjas all around, jumping from trees and rooftops like crazy! Of course there would be trouble!

I nodded, "But is it necessary to fight them?" I said hypothetically, more as a statement than a question

I walked a few paces towards Itachi and his colleagues. "May we go now?" I asked them politely, not sure if they would allow me and Tsunade without any scuffle. That would be fantastic! In fact, I'd gladly pay them to let us go.

Sasori's Hiruko puppet looked at Itachi. Apparently Sasori saw Itachi as his superior for some reason. Probably because in the end, Itachi was stronger. But in a fight between the two, I think Itachi _would _win, but just barely. Alas, it is not relative to the current situation.

Itachi nodded slightly, and Sasori huffed and muttered something as he began to drag Deidara with his Hiruko puppet's metal tail. Kisame finally gave up trying to lift Samehada up onto his shoulders and just dragged it along, creating a trail for anyone to follow.

I sighed in relief. I did _not _want to fight anyone right now. The adrenalin had worn down, making me a bit tired.

"Well, that's enough for excitement for today, I guess," I said pathetically, staring down at the spot of which the Akatsuki members had occupied previously.

I shook my head, clearing it of all thoughts, "Bah! Never mind!" I turned towards Tsunade, who was holding hear head, probably from a headache, I didn't know.

"Time to go back, the rest don't know that we are gone," I said to Tsunade. Tsunade nodded lightly. She was probably tired as hell from the inner world affair.

I approached her and slung her arm over my shoulders, carrying her. Damn, was she heavy too. Probably her massive assets applied to her weight. Not that I'd tell her that, I still held my life precious. Believe it or not.

* * *

><p>Finally, after three and a half hours of walking – the Tanzaku Quarters were larger than I thought – we arrived at the hotel. Tsunade fell asleep while we were travelling to the room, so I had to carry her what one would call bridal style, which, curiously enough, made her seem lighter. No, I probably was subconsciously adding chakra to my arms to make them stronger.<p>

When I knocked on the door it was flung open, revealing Shizune. She had apparently thrown on her black kimono carelessly, not caring if she looked decent or not. She really did care for her master, Tsunade. A lot, if judging about her actions are any indication.

"Tsunade-sama!" she cried out. She grabbed her from my arms and ran back inside the hotel room, uncaring for my haggard look. Well, to be honest, I don't blame her. To put it bluntly, I was not important to her. The wording makes me sad, but it _is _honest.

Shizune laid Tsunade carefully down onto a futon.

I chuckled at Jiraya's and Naruto's sleeping forms. They looked so funny lying there. Naruto had that funny hat on his head, and both of them had a line of drool dripping from the edge of their mouths, their futons splayed haphazardly around.

Shizune turned to face me, and she had a stern expression on her face, "What have you done to Tsunade-sama?" she shrieked. And she could shriek loud, I tell you! Damn! I swear I flinched hard in response to her shriek! Thankfully she didn't wake up neither Tsunade, Jiraya or Naruto. Though Jiraya did give off a loud snore.

"I haven't done anything to her. If you want to blame anyone blame Orochimaru." I affirmed. I could see why she would blame me, seeing as Tsunade was a bombshell of a woman, so it might be very easy to misunderstand the situation.

"Yeah right, as if Orochimaru is to blame for Tsunade-sama's predicament!" she said loudly. She probably calmed down a little from my mentioning of Orochimaru. Well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth, I say!

"Better yet, ask her when she wakes up!" I whispered loudly. I hope she got the message from my words, otherwise I'd have to knock her unconscious. And that would antagonize her. I don't want that. No, sir, not at all!

Shizune sighed, "Very well. We will ask her when she wakes up," then she turned to me, looking as stern as ever. She pointed at me, even! "But if I get to know that you are to blame for this!"

I put up my hands in a placating manner, "Easy, easy. I swear to whatever deity there exists that I did not do anything to her!" I said. I didn't want to have poison instead of blood, mind you. Neither didn't I want my muscles unusable due to that fancy chakra scalpel those medic-nin have. Stupid chakra scalpels and their nifty uses in combat and field medics!

Our argument ended abruptly when Tsunade began to snore. Loudly.

Hot damn, for such a pretty woman, she sure snores loudly! But then again, I guess everyone has to have their weird tics. Otherwise the world would be boring.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I thank revan193 for helping me with ideas! You're a cool dude!


	17. Talking With Kakashi

I laid myself down on the futon, exhausted from the day's events.

Let me recap a little.

I was first ambushed at night time by Orochimaru, I sent him out of Tanzaku Quarters on Shinra Tensei express, then I threw one of my Hiraishin kunai at him, and I took hold of Tsunade, who oh so conveniently couldn't sleep at that specific moment, and used that bastardized Flying Thunder God technique I had 'stolen' the concept of from Minato Namikaze. Then we, as in Tsunade and I, landed onto a clearing. Convenient as well. After a short battle between Kabuto and I, I had used Bansho Ten'in on him and separated his soul from his body. I had promptly sealed it inside the same scroll I had sealed the First Hokage and the Second Hokage in. Not that Kabuto had deserved it, mind you. It was just a convenience for later use.

And then the Akatsuki arrived, with Itachi Uchiha, Sasori of the Red Sand, Deidara of the Rock and Kisame Hoshigaki. I had a short battle with Deidara, whom I had knocked out from a Bansho-Ten'in-fist-to-the-face combo. Then I engaged in combat with Kisame Hoshigaki. He was a troublesome opponent, what with his enormous chakra and his sword-that-shaves. Thankfully, I somehow managed to convince Akatsuki to stay their ground. Thank goodness for that.

So, then I discovered the reason for why Tsunade had been inactive all that short time. She had been possessed by Orochimaru. I had entered her inner world, which strangely enough resembled an unfinished clock tower. She was afraid of age. The older she got the more finished the clock tower would get, I assumed. It might also be the reverse. Both make a small bit of sense. As I opened the doors, they led to what seemed to be glimpses of precious memories of hers. The longer down I got the more intimate the memories. As I got to the lowest room I saw Tsunade crying. Orochimaru was there as well. Both looked like they had seen better days in their lives. Orochimaru had at first attempted to stop me from comforting Tsunade, since 'she had to cry it out'. I called bullshit on that and ignored the white-faced pedophile. After I had comforted Tsunade, and got her to say that she was the Fifth Hokage, she cheered up immensely.

After that ordeal in Tsunade's inner world, Orochimaru left immediately, stating that it was interesting to stay, but he had things to do. And _then _I managed to convince the Akatsuki members to go retreat. I remembered that Sasori had huffed over the uselessness of Deidara. In my scuffle with Kisame I had sealed away three quarters of his chakra, effectively making him go out of commission. He had apparently used chakra to enhance his muscles in order to carry Samehada, his bandage covered sword-that-shaves. I simply cannot get over that...

Anyway, so after a short conversation with Tsunade, she fainted. Or got unconscious, I don't know. So I carried her what one would call bridal style back to the hotel room we had been renting. When I arrived Shizune had been ranting at me, blaming me for Tsunade's haphazard look. And then our pathetic little argument stopped short when Tsunade gave off a particularly nasty snore. That got me snickering.

And that was about all worth recapping over.

Now why did the Akatsuki show up? That's a mystery if there ever was one.

Or not really. Akatsuki could be seeing me as a threat or something. That... is not a good thing. Too bad I conspicuously used the Rinnegan during the Bloodline Civil War in Water country. It could have saved me a lot of trouble had I disguised it. I am pretty sure I am now a big target for Madara and his schemes, but I am a wild card. They are not familiar with my tactics and such things. Or they are, and are simply playing the waiting game. That would definitely prove useful for me. Them playing the waiting game, that is. It would be detrimental for me, definitely, if Akatsuki would now actively hunt for me. But I guess the Rinnegan is not a secret for Akatsuki anymore.

What a shame...

* * *

><p>I woke up mildly. I felt some kind of pressure on my stomach. That was weird. Usually when I wake up I am on my stomach, with my back facing up. Something must have blocked that little thing there. I looked down.<p>

And I meet a curiously adorable sight.

Naruto was sucking his thumb and had his head on my stomach! So! _So_! _Cute_! It's almost cute enough for me to snuggle him to death! Yes, that cute!

And why did I sound like an Uchiha fan girl? It was beginning to disturb me.

Anyway, I pushed Naruto away gently, so that he didn't wake up. I still had my white kimono on. Huh... must have slept with it on. Now it was all rumpled! Dammit all!

I shook my head. It wouldn't help being a pessimist in this case, that was for sure.

* * *

><p>"Let's go, everyone! Back to Konoha!" Naruto lead, shouting boisterously all the way. Quite the buoyant fellow, isn't he?<p>

Jiraya bopped Naruto on the top of his head, "Shut it, brat!" he yelled. I shook my head at his action. Why in the world did he do such a thing? Why not _just _yell at him? Then again, Jiraya always confuses me. Like with his perversive nature! Why did some girls find that attractive? Should I perhaps become perverse to get the girls to like me-

Wait... I have the sexy and attractive Anko as a girlfriend! No need for anything so inexplicably irrational then! That would definitely be detrimental to me! Yes, yes, very!

* * *

><p>We arrived at the gates of Konoha after three hours of non stop tree jumping! Non stop tree jumping! Thank goodness I have chakra, otherwise I'd be seriously lost in the woods! Damn woods! Damn the First Hokage for creating them! Or not... whatever.<p>

Sure, we were ambushed by a few bandits once or twice, but nothing a friendly Rasengan can't do anything about. One of the bandits leered perversely at Tsunade's... assets, for lack of a better word, and lecherously demanded intimate activities with her. Only to be knocked to kingdom come by Tsunade's monstrous strength. And christ, I never got tired of seeing people get fired off like that! Bam! And they're off, flying a mile a second! Hilarious, I say!

The gate customs guards held us up, but the moment they laid eyes on our official passports they immediately let us through, seeing as Jiraya and I had made our names clear during the invasion. It didn't help that Tsunade was world famous as the best healer and medic in the world. Though _that _didn't save Tsunade's lover, Dan Kato. Pitiful, but alas, that is the workings of this world. Shit happens on a daily basis.

I broke off from the group after we had entered through the gates. I don't think that Anko was happy that I left Konoha in search of Tsunade without telling her. In fact, I think she was pissed off.

And was she?

Hell yes she was! I got more non-poisonous snake bites on that day than I had gotten in my entire life. Not that I had been bitten by snakes before, mind you, that would be bad.

After our _happy _reunion we immediately went out to buy some – read; a lot – of dango for Anko to inhale. Dango _I _paid for. After an hour or so of dango eating, we went to my apartment and had some hot steamy pasta. Anko missed the pasta, and making it was also good for her, too. She needed some stress relief, and pasta was the way to go! Besides, I enjoyed it immensely too, so there were absolutely no complaints whatsoever from me! Nice, hot and steamy pasta is delicious! _Especially _when Anko makes it! Wink wink, anyone?

Looking away from scarring you for life, we did reconcile happily after a while. Yes, Anko was angry, but that didn't mean that she didn't understand my reasons. I did not want Anko get hurt because of the Akatsuki. That would be a disaster to me, if there ever was one.

Now to speculate as to why Akatsuki were attacking me!

Now there could be the obvious one, that Akatsuki perceives me as an abnormal threat. That, as stated before, is the obvious solution to the mini mystery.

Or it could be of a more devious nature! It could be that Madara wants my Rinnegan, since I could be the easier target. He could achieve the Rinnegan _and _still be able to sway Nagato around as if Nagato were a lost puppy. And where Nagato goes so does Konan.

Or maybe it was on pure coincidence. The most unlikely scenario out of the three, but without a doubt one that is plausible nonetheless.

Bah! In the end it doesn't matter! All that is worth knowing is that Akatsuki showed up and tried to attack me, only to discover that it simply was not worth it!

I think it was high time for me to go to the Uchiha Compound to talk to Sasuke. My actions might have caused some unwanted ripples in the lake. Ripples I really, really did _not_ like.

* * *

><p>I entered the compound of the Uchiha, intent on finding the house of which Sasuke was in. It was not difficult finding it, thank goodness.<p>

Because there was a brawl between a hundred Naruto Kage Bunshin and the 'last' Uchiha!

I chuckled. Of course! Instead of on the roof of the Konoha Hospital the fight goes on in the place where Sasuke is!

Now why was Sasuke here and not at the Hospital was obvious! He was not hurt during the scuffle between me and Jiraya versus Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki! Well, then again, Sasuke was not really _hurt _during canon fight either. At least, not physically. The mental damage, though was enormous thanks to Itachi's Tsukiyomi.

And Sasuke was not exposed to it. Instead, I was, and I got out of it thanks to my own two eyes, the legendary Rinnegan of the Sage of the Six Paths.

Soon Kakashi will interfere-

And Naruto charged up a Rasengan, with Sasuke preparing his hand sealed Chidori. I wanted to cheer Naruto on, but that would distract a crucial moment. Instead, I used shunshin to go beside Sakura, whom I had noticed was completely still in fear, but I saw that she turned to see who had used shunshin to get behind her.

She gasped loudly, "Ta-Takuma-san?" she exclaimed in a whisper.

I smiled at her benevolently, intending no harm to befall onto her, "I know," I turned just in time to catch Kakashi grabbing onto Naruto's and Sasuke's wrists. He twisted and turned around to throw them onto adjacent roofs.

I chuckled and put my hands in the sleeves of my kimono. I shook my head at the display of unnecessary violence. Why oh why does history repeat itself like this? I didn't know, nor did I think it was worth trying to think over.

Kakashi still said to Sakura that everything would be alright again, 'just like it was before.' he said. Well, good luck with _that_, I say. Kakashi cannot defeat Sasuke once Sasuke gets to train with Orochimaru. There has to be a reason as to why Sasuke gets so strong, and that was because he was training day and night, with little rest.

Well, let's see Naruto train day and night with little rest too. Just this time, he will train with hundreds of shadow clones!

But it is in due time, Shinji! All in due time...

Finally after Kakashi sent Naruto home and got Sasuke to go to his house, he went to Sakura and laid a hand on her shoulder, "It will all be like how it once was, Sakura. Trust me on that!" he said with warmth and determination in his voice.

"Now go off and go to sleep. You'll need it, without a doubt." and with that Sakura nodded and went off. Well, after she waved goodbye – to which I responded happily at, waving back – which brought Kakashi's attention from Sakura's retreating back – get your mind out of the gutter! – to me.

"So, what are you doing here?" he asked warily.

"Oh, just enjoying the view, nothing more!" I said boisterously, my eyes closed and my mouth smiling widely.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Not that I would see that, I had my eyes closed. "What are you doing here?" he repeated.

I opened my eyes and tilted my head in confusion, "What am I doing here?" I echoed, "Yes, what _am_ I doing here?" I tapped my chin. I was feeling particularly playful, so I guess I could go on and on in circles with the suspicious Kakashi Hatake. "There could be the obvious reason; that I was concerned Naruto and knew that he was here." I turned around, my back now facing Kakashi. And I was sure that he was subtly tensing up, preparing to use whatever means necessary should I prove to be a traitorous ninja of Konoha. "Or," I turned around again, facing him now, "there could be the more devious reason! That I was working for Orochimaru and wanted to know dear 'Sasuke-kun''s state" I said with my fingers up in the air in air quotes, "and the state of his Cursed Seal."

Kakashi tensed up real hard, "How did you know about it? The Cursed Seal?"

I looked at Kakashi for a second. Then I tapped my chin in wonderment. I was thinking about what lie I should tell him. Or should I just tell him that I was at the Chuunin Preliminaries, henged into a standard issue Konoha ninja? I guess I could lie to him and say that I was told by Anko. Our relationship was not exactly a secret.

I smirked smugly, which got Kakashi to narrow his eye, "I was told by my dear Anko-chan." I decided to lie. It was so fun to see Kakashi tense up so much, it was almost as if he was that kind of car that you could wind up for it to drive far! So much fun, definitely if you were a kid!

There was silence for a moment before Kakashi said something, "I don't believe you."

I sighed. Of course, he was an Elite Jounin. He is bound to be the more perceptive of the two of us, "You're right, that was a lie." I looked at him without emotion on my face, "I was under a henge during the Chuunin Preliminaries. That is how I know about Sasuke's Cursed Seal. I also know that it's the Cursed Seal of Heaven, the same one Anko-chan _had_." I emphasized. It wouldn't do for Kakashi to misunderstand me, now, would it?

Suddenly my collar was grabbed tightly, "You can remove Orochimaru's Cursed Seals?" Kakashi inquired frantically.

"Now now, calm down!" I placated. Kakashi's action startled me to the point where I had enforced my bones with chakra. When I realized that I dispelled the chakra going through my bones.

Kakashi saw his mistake and let go of the collar of my white kimono slowly. "There," I said, "That wasn't so tough, now was it?"

My kimono was getting slightly ruffled so I fixed it, "Now about Sasuke's Cursed Seal. No, I can't remove it."

Once again my collar was grabbed, though this time I was lifted into the air and slammed into the wall, cracking it slightly, "Why?" Kakashi demanded.

Once again Kakashi's actions proved to be startling me. It forced my instincts to enhance my bone structure with chakra once again. "Damn, Hatake-san, stop grabbing onto me! People might seem to get the wrong idea!" I said, my grin strained but still there.

Kakashi took a deep breath to calm himself and once again let go of my kimono. Damn, it was going to need some ironing now! Damn Kakashi and his stupid antics!

"There," I soothed, "Are you prepared to have a civilized conversation now?" I questioned sarcastically. Kakashi sure had a tight temper today. And he was supposed to be the most easy going one of all the Elite Jounin! Must be the situation that got him tensed up so much...

Kakashi gave out a shuttering breath, calming himself considerably, "Yes. Let's talk. My place." he suggested.

* * *

><p>As suggested by the silver haired Jounin we went to Kakashi's apartment. It was surprisingly, and suspiciously, close to Naruto's apartment. Just two blocks away, which can be covered with a shunshin in one go. Granted you had to be real good at the Body Flicker technique, but it was without a doubt possible.<p>

"Now," Kakashi demanded as he sat down at the table, "Tell me why you can't remove Sasuke's Cursed Mark.". He folded his hands together and put them on the table.

I joined him at the table shortly after looking around his apartment. Not that there was much to see anyway, it was like mine in architecture, and with furniture? Very, very sparse, Spartan, even.

"Yes," I drawled. I leaned backwards, making myself comfortable. Now I hadn't wasted the time Kakashi and I had been walking to his residence. I had thought up a lie on the way. And as usual with my lies they came and were utilizing plausible facts along with a little white lying here and there. Nothing to frown at, my ability to invent stuff!

"The reason I cannot remove Uchiha-san's Cursed _Seal_," I emphasized the word 'seal'. It would definitely not do for Kakashi to be incorrect in his wording, now, would it? "Is because it has not been in his system as long as Anko-chan's Cursed Seal. Thus I cannot predict the consequences of removing it."

Kakashi frowned and tightened his hold on his hands, "What consequences where there, if I may ask?"

I, too, frowned. I hadn't considered Kakashi to ask that question. But then again, I knew the seals I had used to remove Anko Mitarashi's Cursed Seal by heart. Therefore I also sort of could guess the repercussions it would have. Emphasis on sort of.

"There is a nineteen percent chance of complete arm disability, eighteen percent chance of complete disability on both of your hands, twenty three percent chance of frying your brain, effectively making you a living vegetable, and lastly, a thirty percent chance of death."

There was silence for a moment. I wasn't surprised, either. Granted, I had lied during giving out the various percentages. It was in fact three percent chance of death, not thirty. But what can a white lie not do? Not much, but in this case it was going in my favour. At last, something was going my way. Not saying things never do or anything, because they do, but – whatever!

Kakashi finally shook his head, "Are the chances stacked up on each other?"

"As a matter of fact yes! Yes they are!" I clapped my hands together once, happy that Kakashi was pessimistic about Sasuke's chances!

He sighed sadly, "Not good, then."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Recently I have had a loss of inspiration! Oh noes, you might say? Don't worry, inspiration hits me every now and then, but it has just come in short supply recently.

Tell me, do you know how to gain said inspiration to write? Because I really, really need it! Now, more than ever!


	18. Shinji Takuma, The Liar

"Definitely not good, yes!" I said cheerfully.

Kakashi eyed me weirdly, as if he had spotted some kind of sore spot on his skin and wanted it removed. "You are a strange person, Takuma-san." he observed. Or I guess he was observing and not insulting me. I was fine either way.

I nodded in response, agreeing to Kakashi's... statement, "Why thank you!" I said ironically.

Then there was silence for a few moments. Then Kakashi had to say the golden question! "But if Sasuke's chances are that low, then how come you have done it with Mitarashi? Were her chances as low as Sasuke's?"! He just had to ask a question to which I had to find an answer to! Quick, brain, hurry and find a lie!

"Well, you see, her chances were considerably higher than the Uchiha's. There was only a four percent chance of her eyes being permanently disabled, along with a sixteen percent chance of brain damage that would need the skills of Tsunade-sama to recover. But that would be all of it. Nothing compared to the Uchiha's chances, now, is it?" Thank goodness for a quick... wait. That wasn't a lie. Ha! Guess lying wasn't needed after all! Thank you, my grey matter!

"But how come Sasuke's chances are lower than Mitarashi's? What has it to do with how long the Cursed Seal has been in the system? You must forgive me, I'm not very well versed in sealing."

I stood up from my chair and went to the window that displayed the night life of Konoha. I folded my hands behind my back, standing clear to attention for whatever our conversation would lead to. I sighed heavily, "Not many are, Hatake-san." I said morosely. Why oh why did the Shinobi Academy not teach children in the arts of Sealing? It would create so many more geniuses! Think about the opportunities! There could be more versions of the Hiraishin technique! So many things could be improved, Konoha could be improved! The village, if you could even call it that, could be sealed in such a manner that whomsoever had evil intentions could not see it! Or it could be sealed in such a way that whomsoever had evil intentions would alert the military! The opportunities and possibilities were absolutely endless!

"What has the Cursed Seal being in the system longer have to do with removing it?" I turned my head so I could see Kakashi having turned in his chair to see me out in the corner of my eye. I could see him nodding slightly in response to my question. "Well, let's begin by saying that it is complicated. Some consider the Cursed Seal to be a cancer. That it is best to remove it as quickly as possible. I consider it to be quite the opposite. Not a cure, mind you, still a sickness. It sucks out the life chakra of the victim at inception, converting it into the tainted chakra we know of. After it is converted it puts the tainted chakra back into the life chakra of the victim. During this process the victim is unconscious due to a lack of chakra in the primary chakra system. The Cursed Seal does not always return all the life chakra back immediately, thus why most people die when they get the Cursed Seal marked onto their skin. Right now Sasuke still hasn't gotten all the life chakra back, hence why he is acting so strangely recently. I cannot purify his life chakra without risking his life again. At least not for the next three years or so."

Kakashi was quiet for a moment before he was about to say something. I interrupted him, however. "Be careful around Sasuke from now on, though. His life chakra is what produces chakra for the secondary system, and tainted chakra is much, much more potent than regular chakra. And it affects the personality of the victim, making them become much more violent and hateful, it basically degrades their minds. And considering who Sasuke hates with all his heart, I'd be even more careful around him from now on."

Kakashi gasped, "Itachi Uchiha!"

"Exactly."

Kakashi shot up from his chair and sped to his window, opened it and used shunshin to go wherever.

I stood stock still for a few moments.

What just happened?

Kakashi opened the window and used shunshin, idiot! Of course that happened! Kakashi might have misunderstood the message you had. Or he might have not. I hoped correctly it was the latter. Now it was time to play the waiting game.

At least Anko-chan was free for the night. Rawr!

* * *

><p>"Oooh, Anko-chan!" I put my hand beside my mouth and enhanced my voice with chakra, making it slightly louder than usual.<p>

"Yes, Shinji-kun?" Anko's head propped out of the bathroom door. She looked at me with a questioning expression on her face. Damn! She looked so adorable! The only thing needed right now was for Naruto to sprout out of the bedroom door shouting 'Mommy!' or 'Daddy!'! Then it would be the perfect family, yes?

My expression suddenly took a turn from playful and happy to serious. "You know about my clairvoyance, right?" I lied once again about my 'clairvoyance'. You'd think I felt bad about lying so much! Yet I didn't! I must be a natural born liar!

Anko detected my seriousness and too turned serious. "Yeah. What of it?" Though she still seemed sceptical of my 'ability to divine the future', she still accepted it as a fact. Thank goodness for that, otherwise I would be in serious trouble!

"Sasuke will escape. Today," and I waited for Anko's explosion with bated breath.

With it not coming at all. I dared a peek through a crack of my eyelids, and sure enough there was Anko. Though she seemed to have a completely blank look on her face. One that, if she had her mouth open-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

I shook my head, "Any answer, Anko-chan?" I inquired.

Anko sighed slowly, letting go of some tension in her muscles, "What am I supposed to say? That the brat should just up and die? That would solve a lot of problems, you know."

I shook my head again, "No, it wouldn't do for anyone if we got rid of him, Anko-chan. It won't be good for various reasons."

"Such as?" she said sarcastically, putting a hand on her hip, looking fairly sceptical. And cute. And-

No! Don't go there! Damn, my libido seems to be on an all-time high whenever I am around Anko! And with good reason, too! She's sexy! She's attractive! She's whatever you might think up! Perfect, some would say, but I don't believe in perfection! Nope, there is no such thing! Unless you see chaos as perfection, or imperfection as perfection!

I sighed because of my scatter brained thoughts, "It's for the best. Trust me, Anko-chan."

* * *

><p>I walked towards the gates of Konoha, and when I reached it I leaned towards one of the buildings' wall. And what do you know, I saw Sakura begging Naruto to bring Sasuke back. Naruto gave Sakura a thumbs-up, smiling his fake foxy smile with his eyes closed and all. Beside Naruto stood Neji Hyuuga, Chouji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, Kiba Inuzuka and his trusty dog, Akamaru. All five – or in this case six, when you count Akamaru in – were ready to fight big bad enemies. Though I guess that if time wasn't in so short a supply I would have given a bit of advice and some forewarning. That I would not manipulate, that was for certain. Too dangerous to tamper with. Far too unpredictable. So I stayed back. Make sure everything went how it should go.<p>

Just hope that my tampering with the time-line wouldn't do too much different with it...

* * *

><p>I decided to not even say good luck to Naruto and his fellow shinobi. Instead, I opted to simply walk out towards the Valley of the End with Anko following my steps closely. I sensed some chakra signatures fighting each other, or I guess they were fighting. It could be that they were simply in a disagreement and were constantly walking away and towards each other all the time. Though that did seem highly unlikely.<p>

"So what are we going to do in the Valley of the End?" Anko asked me. Curiously enough, she had zipped her trench coat up, sticking her hands in her pockets. The coat covered her mouth as high the collar was.

"We're going to watch Naruto kick Sasuke's ass, that's what!" I said in response, though the tone in which I said it in was low and serious. I didn't even look back at Anko when I said it, either.

Anko grinned, "Awesome! I'll be happy to see the Uchiha get down on the ground! This will be fun!"

"Most definitely, Anko-chan. Most definitely." I whispered with a knowing smirk. The battle between the two lasted, what, four episodes? It was pretty epic, too. Doesn't beat when Naruto beats Nagato's Deva Path all to hell, though!

* * *

><p>We had taken an indirect route through the forests, thus avoiding all the battles that would without a shadow of a doubt happen in the forests in between Konoha and the Valley of the End.<p>

We arrived at the Valley of the End just in time to see Naruto's Rasengan clash with Sasuke's Chidori, creating a massive black ball of pure and evil chakra. You could practically feel the killer intent leaking through the woods surrounding the Valley of the End! It was a terrifying experience, one I would not for the life of me ever feel once more.

The rain began to pour down, but I knew it would. I jumped down into the Valley of the End, the side of where Madara of the Uchiha was standing. The statue's feet was obliterated, creating a space to stand on, with which I did. I turned and saw Sasuke walk towards the forest opposite of the one I and Anko had come from.

Speaking of Anko, she was about to charge off towards the Uchiha to drag him back to Konoha, but I held her back with a chakra enforced arm. And surprisingly enough she let herself be held back. No resistance, no complaining, nothing. She just grunted and pulled her arm – the appendage I had grabbed onto – back to her person.

"Take Naruto back to the village," I told her. I jumped down onto the ground. We were still unnoticed by Sasuke. Then again, he was probably still trying to convince himself that he was doing the right thing, that letting Naruto live was the right answer. Which I would definitely not argue to! It would ruin a lot of people's lives if he had died here, and if he were to be killed, I'd say screw storyline, I was going to get revenge onto whomsoever had killed him! In this case, it would have been Sasuke.

Thank goodness that wasn't necessary, though.

I used shunshin to get in front of Sasuke, leaning towards a tree.

_Still _unnoticed! Which was fine, really! He had just been battling against his supposed best friend! It had to be a traumatic experience!

I think... I personally wouldn't know, I have never battled against a person of whom I had considered a friend or battled a person of whom I consider myself close to. None, whatsoever! So I would not understand 'Sasuke's pain'. Screw pain, pleasure is where it's at!

And finally, when Sasuke was three metres away from me did he lift his head up to meet my eyes. I schooled my expression quickly, adopting quite the determined face. I mean, I suppose that making Sasuke more determined to get his revenge on Itachi would do him good. Here's hoping that he didn't have enough chakra to use another Chidori! Otherwise I'd have to use a substitution technique!

We were both silent for a moment. The only thing that could be heard was the crashing waves of the waterfall of the Valley of the End. Not even our breaths could be heard. Then again, I never breathe heavily. That always makes me dizzy.

"What are you doing here, Takuma?" Sasuke finally demanded. He finally said something! Good boy!

I smirked at my thoughts, "Took that long to recognize me?" I shook my head, "I'm not surprised. To be honest, I'd have thought it would have taken you thirty minutes for you to recognize me with your oh so holy brain." I taunted.

Sasuke frowned at my words, "You didn't answer my question, Takuma!" he growled. He was without a doubt exhausted from his battle with a certain blonde haired, orange wearing, whisker faced ninja.

I made my face go blank before I smirked smugly, making Sasuke tense up his muscles a lot, "I am here," I pointed at him, "To give you a message."

"What message? Tell me, or else!"

Ooh, threatening a superior in all but social standing? What guts! "I'm here to tell you that Itachi," I noticed that Sasuke was glaring at me now, "As he is now, is by far too strong for you," my expression turned serious, "Get stronger, or else I'll personally make you grind your face on the ground of which I would consider shit!" I growled back at him. Then, to seem more mysterious, I used shunshin to appear on the other side of the streaming river. I used shunshin again to get atop the Valley of the End. I looked back, but I could not spot Sasuke again.

Good.

* * *

><p>I arrived alone back at the gates of Konoha. It was eerily quiet compared to how hectic I thought it would be. At least I knew that the Konoha Hospital would be hectic as hell to get Neji and Chouji stabilized. It would require all the expertise Tsunade has to get them back up and kicking about. And Naruto? Let's not even <em>go <em>there. His condition had to be the worst of the eight people that went to help him recover Sasuke! He got stabbed through his chest! _Twice_! Something I said – albeit lied about – would not have happened!

I entered the Konoha Hospital, and sure enough, it was frantic, chaotic even. The nurses came and went from door to door and doctors were restlessly going to something that I guessed was Intensive Care and to other stations. The only one who seemed to not even consider anything here was the receptionist. She was simply filing her nails. Not that I was pissed at her or anything, she couldn't do anything to help. So I guess she had learned to just be calm and collected during a time of crisis. I totally understood that. No, really! I did!

I sighed and left the Konoha Hospital. It wouldn't do for me to be waiting there just yet. I knew, or at least thought, that the conditions of Neji, Chouji and Naruto would be critical to the point of where it would take _days_ for them to properly recover. So instead I went to my apartment.

I entered my apartment and sat down by the table. I took out some equipment, an empty scroll, brush and an ink pot. I began to write a goodbye letter for everyone I cared about here in this world. Now, why in the world would I do that, you may ask? Simple!

Akatsuki was after me, that's why!

And that does definitely _not _bode well _for anyone_!

And I began to write down several words to begin with. Often did I remove them with chakra to ensure that everything I wrote was flawless. Time and again did I have to remove ink with chakra, leading it back to the ink pot so it didn't have to be wasted.

And are you curious about what the end result was? Very well, let's begin the letter from which Naruto and hopefully Anko would receive upon my death:

'_Dear Anko Mitarashi-chan, Naruto Uzumaki-kun,_'

If you are reading this then that must mean I am dead.

Anko-chan already knows of this, but you don't Naruto. I am a 'future teller'. I can see the future. Clairvoyant, if you will. I knew about the invasion of Konoha by Suna and Oto. I knew that Orochimaru would give Sasuke the Cursed Seal, I knew that you, Naruto, would be given an Earth scroll during the Chuunin Exams' second stage, and that you would be up against Kiba Inuzuka during the preliminaries. I knew that you would win against him, if not barely. I knew you would be up against Neji Hyuuga during the final stage of the Chuunin Exams. I knew Gaara was the container of the One Tailed Raccoon. I knew of your battle with Gaara of the Desert. I knew you would summon Gamabunta to escape a Sand Coffin with the help of the Kyuubi's chakra. I understand the need of it, don't worry. In fact, I approve of your use of_ its _chakra. I knew that Sasuke would defect from Konoha for Orochimaru to gain more power. I knew of your battle with the Sound Four, or more like the Sound Five when you think about it. I knew about your battle with Sasuke – well done, by the way! You survived what I said no one would! - and even if you would lose that battle, I don't see it as a loss! In fact, I'd say _you _won the battle!

I also knew that you would go on a training trip with me! How much I know I will tell on a later occasion!

What you didn't know, Anko-chan, was that all that is false. I am not clairvoyant. I cannot see the future. If you thought that then you have been lied to by me. I have told a lot of lies to everyone, and for that, I apologize.

You won't believe this, and that is quite alright; I come from another universe, where everything you experience, Naruto, is but a mere manga for other's enjoyment. Many saw it as the epitome of awesome, that manga. Some – very few, I might add – saw it as dirt.

I was one of those who saw it, not as dirt, not as awesome, but as a lifeline. You, Naruto, were an inspiration as a character!

Don't for a second think that what you live through is a lie! Because there is such a thing as another universe! For all I know _I _might have been living a lie!

But that is not what I am supposed to write to you.

What I am about to tell you is extremely important! Do_ not_ forget it!

It is information about the individual Akatsuki members and their abilities! Yes, I know even of that!

Then I wrote down all the abilities of each of the Akatsuki members, how they looked like, I even went down into detail about how to defeat each of them! I explained about Pain's abilities, his six bodies, and the real Pain, Nagato. I even wrote down that he had the Rinnegan and was able to see through each other's eyes. There was not much I didn't write down about the individual Akatsuki members, really. The only thing I didn't explain was Tobi being an Uchiha, Uchiha Madara. I didn't write that down simply because I didn't want them to discover _everything _about the Akatsuki simply through a scroll I have written.

Though I did mention that Tobi was not who he seemed to be.

Finally, I ended the letter:

And Anko? I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I had to leave you. I love you with all my heart. Please, move on, if you haven't already. Don't fall to despair! Or else I'll come back from the grave and haunt you until you're back up and kicking my ghost in the ass!

Please, don't get sad from my death. It'll only make my death seem to be in vain.

_With love,_

_Shinji Takuma, the liar_'

And I rolled up the scroll and put it in a pocket inside my kimono.


	19. Three Zero Six

Now that I think about it, I should have added a lot more to the scroll. Maybe explain to them the world I came from in detail. But what is done is done, and there is nothing I can do to make it right now. No post scriptum, nothing! But that, in the end, didn't matter! I should live the life I have been given, that is that!

I think it was time to take a visit to my favourite blonde super-hero!

* * *

><p>I entered the Konoha Hospital, and as I expected, it was still as hectic as it was three hours ago.<p>

I walked up to the receptionist, who was still looking as uncaring as ever, filing her nails like that, "Do you happen to have a patient named 'Naruto Uzumaki' here?" I asked patiently. And it wouldn't surprise me if she frowned and acted as if no one said anything to her! Honestly, people treating the scroll as the kunai are really stupid, aren't they?

Sure enough, she frowned, but luckily for me, she did open her mouth to speak, "Yeah. Why do you want to meet _him_?" she spat at me with figurative venom in her voice.

I sighed deeply. It seemed that someone still had some hatred for our favourite blonde. "It doesn't concern you, now which room is he in?" I replied harshly. I didn't have time for hateful comments!

I must have subconsciously leaked killer intent because the entire room was immediately stilled to a halt, everyone looking at the two of us as if a major beat down would happen. And I for one would not want to disappoint!

"He-he-he's in ro-room th-th-three z-zero six!" she managed to stammer out. She was undoubtedly afraid of me now. And it felt _good _making someone afraid like that. Ha! I should do it more often, then!

I reigned in my killer intent, which I found out I was leaking after all, and rudely cut the conversation, if you could call it that, short and walked off to the stairs.

* * *

><p>I opened the door that was labelled with the numbers three-zero-six, and sure enough, there was Naruto, fast asleep. He had bandages all over his face and arms, and without a doubt had around his chest, torso and legs, hell, even his hands and feet were bandaged up, with splotches of red creeping out of them.<p>

I approached the whisker faced teenager and sat down on beside his bed. I noticed that the pillow wasn't properly aligned with his head so I fixed that! I had to! Naruto deserved at least _that _comfort!

I looked around the room, but for a hospital it sure was empty! Heck, the view out of the window was nothing to talk about at all! The only thing you could see was an alley wide enough for only three people to stand together shoulder to shoulder! That was narrow as hell! I wanted to move him to room with better view, and with better sunlight, but I wasn't sure if I would aggravate any of the wounds, so I didn't.

Now that I think about it, why wasn't Hinata here? I had to fix that! So I sent a shadow clone over to the Hyuuga Compound. I didn't want to leave the squirt behind, now, would I?

And I created yet another shadow clone! This time I wanted it to take a trip to fetch Anko. With them all together I could begin to explain the necessities Naruto would probably experience. Hell, maybe if the Hyuuga allowed it I could take Hinata with me on the training trip! That would be awesome! That would both enhance her capabilities as a ninja _and _further her relationship with Naruto to the point where it would probably end up being romantic! That would be so cute I would probably faint because of the cuteness! Yes, I love cute things. I'm a cat person, since they're much cuter than dogs! Live with it!

Anyway, I shook my head to clear my scatter brained thoughts, I think I heard someone knock on the door. I didn't want to stand up, so instead I opted to call out to the knocker.

"Yes?" I said. I hoped it was loud enough for the knocker to hear it. And sure enough the door opened to reveal a shy bob of black hair with a blue tint to it.

Hinata Hyuuga entered the room with my shadow clone as an escort. I dispelled the shadow clone and got the memories of it being in a conversation with the Hyuuga clan head about various issues the Hyuuga apparently had with me. Luckily for me my shadow clone knew its way around the complaints and said that it was a mere shadow clone, it was not there to argue, but merely escort Hinata'-sama', as my shadow clone had wisely called her in front of the clan head, to the Konoha Hospital for a visit to a Naruto Uzumaki. Thankfully Hinata herself had chosen that specific moment to show herself and had, like a proper Hyuuga, I noticed, requested for my shadow clone to be an escort to the Konoha Hospital. All you need to know was that the clan head, Hiashi Hyuuga, Hinata's father, complied in the end, letting his daughter go with a small warning to my shadow clone that should any harm befall her the real me would be castrated, hanged, bifurcated, and such and such and such. You know the drill. I'd basically be killed. But alas, no harm would befall her whatsoever as long as I was there with her. None! At all!

"Is Na-Naruto-kun here?" Hinata stammered.

I smiled gently to her and nodded slowly. Immediately Hinata stormed her way to the bed so fast it was almost as if she used a space-time jutsu! I saw her let some tears fall on Naruto's unconscious body. Curiously enough, it reminded me of when Orihime from Bleach was about to kiss Ichigo-

Hinata kissed Naruto...

On the lips...

Right in front of me...

Holy shit!

The door opened quickly but quietly. And in walked Anko, with a scared expression on her face. Or as closed to scared as she could be, really. Which wasn't much.

She approached the bed, and we all huddled together around Naruto's bed.

I pulled out an extra chair from a corner of the room and I put it by the edge of Naruto's bed. As I sat on it I began to think about the coming future.

I would go on the training trip with Naruto, that would be unquestioned. Now the variations on which I could go with him were many. So many variables! I could have Anko with us or I could not! I could take Hinata with us or I could not! I could make Jiraya join us or I could not! What should I do during the two and a half year training trip to begin with anyway? What should I teach Naruto? It was obvious that his chakra control needed work! We would work on that! His jutsu library left much to be desired and he should without a shadow of a doubt need some boosting in his strength and taijutsu. I was a damn near literal sucker in taijutsu so I could not help him there. I had to have a third person who could help him there. Possibly Anko, then! But I remember Jiraya having quite high statistics in his taijutsu, so I might have to bring him with me too.

Alright, it is decided! I will take Anko _and_ Jiraya with me! Jiraya will teach Naruto taijutsu while I will teach Naruto ninjutsu and genjutsu, along with getting him to become more fixated on actually training in using himself and not relying too much on the Kyuubi! Using chakra that is not his to begin with would be cowardly! He already has massive reserves to begin with, along with the ability to use hundreds, if not thousands, of Kage Bunshin! If I play my cards correctly Naruto will surpass even the Sage of the Six Paths!

Though that might be a bit overdoing it. The legendary Sage was the _very best _of the very best, after all.

Anyway, how about Hinata? If I was allowed to take her with me then I would definitely take her with me! Her potential is up there with Naruto, and with the potential romance between the two, they might become partners in more than sparring. Wink wink, anyone?

Looking past that, Hinata is without a doubt a talented taijutsu combatant, or at least could be, should someone be willing to train her! I was willing to train her, that was for sure! Hell, I'd be happy to train her while in the mean time get Naruto and Hinata to go on a date!

But looking away from romantic relationships, where should I go during the training trip? I could go where I had first planned to go, Takigakure. There they had poisons that I could learn, and where there were poisons there were antidotes. Though I would only get myself the antidotes. I did _not _want the poisons! There could be any number of fatalities if I carried them with me! Like Naruto mistaking them for some sort of soft drink! That honestly wouldn't surprise me.

And now that I think about it, wasn't there a Jinchuuriki in Takigakure? What was the Jinchuuriki's name again? It had something to do with wind... oh right! Fu! What gender was Fu, now? Oh right! It wasn't determined, but Fu sure as hell looked like a girl! I remember now! Fu was this green haired girl that wore white, attention seeking clothing, and was despised and loathed by Takigakure's civilians and shinobi because she held the Seven Tailed Beetle. Maybe I could fix that, take her with me during the training trip! I bet that Takigakure wouldn't mind me taking their Jinchuuriki with me. Maybe Fu would be properly appreciated in Konoha! That would be nice for her! She would see me as a hero, too!

Other than that, the training trip would be quite uneventful. But Naruto, being Naruto, would beyond any doubt rectify that!

Now that my train of thoughts have reached the training trip, I should make a stop at Wave Country. Haku and Zabuza must not be resurrected! And sealing Zabuza's sword stuck on the ground would ensure that Suigetsu wouldn't get the sword. I did not want Sasuke's team to defile any graves! Especially not Haku's and Zabuza's! They deserved the rest they were given! If anyone disagreed then they were heartless monster of the most heartless of monsters! I say!

I heard a groan in front of me. I looked up to see Naruto stirring, with Anko and Hinata fussing about quietly, 'Oh no, Naruto-kun is about to wake up, what do I do?' and 'The brat's waking up! Have to look prim and proper!' or something along those lines. I chuckled at the show of affection they had for the little squirt. Especially what Hinata was experiencing! She was blushing an interesting shade of red, actually.

I heard another groan emitted from my favourite blonde, "Uh, where-where am I?" he asked nobody in particular.

"You're in the hospital, squirt." I said with a small smile on my face. Naruto looked up and was shocked to see me, Anko _and _Hinata around his bed. Thankfully he didn't ask us about why we were there. Instead his eyes got watery and he sniffled a little.

Hinata blushed a deeper shade of red but managed to overcome her shyness to ask what was wrong, "Wha-What is wrong, Naruto-kun?" she stammered out. I would have to fix her stammering, it wouldn't do for her to stammer constantly, especially in front of the one she adores so much. In fact, she should be more confident in front of her Naruto-kun!

Naruto managed to somehow, despite being bandaged up like he was, wipe away the incoming tears in his eyes. He was without any doubt moved over the fact that somebody cared for him. Heh, he would be surprised to see that quite a few were there for him! Me definitely included!

"N-Nothing's wrong! Jus-Just something got into my eye!". Ha! I'm not the only liar here! Naruto even smiled with that foxy smile of his, but I was sure that it wasn't fake. That it was definitely genuine!

I smiled widely, heck, I was grinning, at Naruto's answer. I am certainly not the only liar here! "Well, Naruto, how do you feel?" I asked with mirth.

Naruto snapped his gaze to me, our eyes meeting. Naruto had curiously enough tensed up, like he wasn't expecting such a question from me. It was a weird feeling, it was as if he was doubting me. But I perished the thought as soon as it came to my being. This was Naruto, the person who should be able to control all hatred!

What in the world am I saying? It is making no sense whatsoever!

Anyway, I noticed that Naruto immediately after identifying the talker of said words eased up his muscles. So that's what's wrong! He merely didn't know who said them. Curious, since I had already said something. Huh, he must have been disoriented or something then.

Naruto looked down in sadness. It was pretty apparent why he was sad to begin with. He wasn't strong enough to take Sasuke back. That would be rectified during the training trip! Naruto would be Kage level after a year of training! I guaranteed it! I promised myself at that moment that he would at the end of the highly spoken of training trip he would be strong enough to at least rival Kakashi!

The mood almost visibly darkened, since when Naruto was down everybody was down. He was technically speaking a sun, holding up the mood! And when the sun is down, everyone sees the repercussions for such a thing!

I wouldn't have it!

I frowned deeply, "Naruto!" I called out, startling everyone in the room.

Naruto's head snapped to me. He shrunk back, mistaking my frown was me glaring at him. He should know that it wasn't directed at him! Though I was sure that he didn't know that.

My gaze hardened, but I wasn't frowning anymore, "Give up on getting Sasuke back."

Immediately Anko went ballistic, "What in the world are you saying, Shinji?" she yelled harshly. I knew that it was harsh, saying what I said. But I wanted Naruto to figure out my deeper meaning in my words. I didn't want him to give up! I wanted him to continue chasing after Sasuke, despite what everyone says, despite all the hardships! Why should Naruto become Hokage if he cannot even save one friend? It was time to grow up! That was what I wanted for Naruto! He had to grow up!

Anko was about to hit my head, hard, but I reacted faster than anyone had anticipated, and grabbed onto her clenched fist. All the while I didn't break the connection Naruto's eyes and my eyes had.

Me grabbing onto Anko's hand surprised her greatly. I mean, I was horrible at taijutsu! Why should I be able to react that quickly?

Reason was simple, really. I had expected Anko to hit me, thus I had channelled lightning chakra throughout my body to enhance my reflexes! It was simple in both theory and practice.

I didn't hold onto Anko's fist, though. After Anko let up on her strength I let go of her hand.

Through it all Naruto and I never broke eye-contact. Naruto, however, got this determined look in his eyes, one I had expected, but one that was so intense, that despite me expecting it it was still so surprising my eyes widened! Yes, my eyes widened in surprise!

Anko sat back down and calmed down considerably, considering her previous actions, "What do you mean by that, Shinji?" she said quietly, "Sasuke is Naruto's-" she stopped immediately, because I held up a hand. Hinata was too stunned to say or do anything because of the various happenings.

I didn't break eye-contact with Naruto when I continued, disregarding Anko's question. It would undoubtedly aggravate her, but she would have to deal with it for now, "Naruto, you're a fool if you continue to chase Sasuke. Be smart. Don't chase him anymore. Forget your promise to Sakura. It's a promise you can't keep!"

Naruto's eyes were sad at first , but before I could readily confirm it was there his eyes jumped from sadness to determination so quick that if I hadn't been sitting down I'd have been blown away! Alright, it's purely metaphorical, but still!

"If abandoning a friend means that I'm smart, then I'll remain a fool my entire life!" Naruto said, brimming with untold determination!

My eyes widened once again in surprise at Naruto's words. Those words, no matter how many times I imagine them, no matter how many times I read, hear, see them, I will always get excited, like I want to punch something inanimate thing so hard that it gets completely and utterly eviscerated! Or something along those lines.

And you know what I did?

I chuckled, and then I smirked, "Well then!" I said, clapping my hands together in a boisterous manner, "If I can't have you stray from that path, then I'll make sure you can catch up to him!" I grinned widely in a show of equal determination to Naruto's.

Everyone in the room stared wide-eyed at me, as if I had grown a second head! They probably thought that since I went from discouraging to encouraging that I was insane! And I probably was to begin with anyway, so no loss there.

"What is wrong with you today, Shinji-kun?" Anko said hesitantly, after there had been a silence of about three seconds.

I finally turned my head to face my dear Anko, "Well, Anko-chan! It is difficult to properly tell you this, but I'll just be blunt!". Once again I clapped my hands together loudly, as if to proclaim a point. And nobody in the room noticed that the door had opened once more. Only this time it was only to peek through a crack, "He had to come to a conclusion by himself! Otherwise it would not have been as convincing if I had just _given _him the answer!"

The crack in the door widened a bit, and a brown stray of hair was shown, "But why in the world be so rude about it?" Anko demanded, throwing her arms around in a wild show, emphasizing her statement a great deal.

"Naruto is a guy who _does _things! He doesn't _say _them! He doesn't _listen _unless he really wants to!" I said, but meant no offence to Naruto at all. "If Naruto doesn't come to his own conclusions he will never learn! That is the type of guy he is!"

My audience consisting of three people, Hinata, Naruto and Anko were listening to me with rapt attention now, "Besides, with Akatsuki not chasing after Naruto for the next three to four years, and with Orochimaru not able to use his little immortality jutsu for the next three years, we'll have three or so years to train Naruto in! What do you say, Naruto," I turned my head away from Anko's gaze to Naruto's, "Want to become my apprentice?"

And at that the door opened to reveal Shikamaru, leaning towards the door frame.

"Yo.", he waved.

Well, what do you know! There was Shikamaru standing so casually against the frame of the door! Ha! You'd almost take him for his lazy father!

Naruto visible brightened up a bit, "Hey, Shikamaru!" he said, returning to his obnoxious self for a bit. Well, not really obnoxious, more like loud instead.

I snapped my head towards the door, and with a raised eyebrow I asked, "Did you hear what I said?"

Shikamaru nodded, "Every last troublesome detail," he smirked.

"Alrighty, then! Naruto, I expect you to be healthy and able to get out of that bed within three hours!" and I used my Hiraishin to disappear to my apartment, leaving behind a crimson flash of light.

* * *

><p>I sighed deeply as I threw myself down onto the bed.<p>

This would be one troublesome training trip...

* * *

><p>After I had an hour power nap I went straight to the Hokage, Tsunade Senju, and discussed the possibility of going on that training trip. She actually wasn't that difficult to convince! She said that as long as someone she could trust was with us, she agreed! And she chose Jiraya to go with us! All parties were happy! Some higher being must love me now!<p>

After the discussion with Jiraya and Tsunade I went straight for the Konoha Hospital.

I once again entered through the front door to the reception. I saw the receptionist's eyes snap the entrance, and in turn, me. She ducked underneath the desk in fright, covering her head with her measly hands! Ha! Coward! Just because-

Oh right. I traumatized her by using some killer intent. And some killer intent I have, huh?

Just to screw with the receptionist I focused all of my killer intent on her. I heard a bump on the desk, indicating that her head had bumped hard on the underside of the desk, and then she promptly fainted. Or I guess she fainted, because her breathing stabilized after that bump. And it _was_ a particularly _nasty _bump, after all was said and done!

Anyway, so I walked up three pairs of stairs and knocked on the door that said three zero six. I heard some shuffling inside the room, and without any warning I immediately opened the door, my eyes taking in the sight I saw.

It wasn't actually that strange a sight, sorry to disappoint. It was just Naruto taking off his bandages carefully, with Hinata assisting him with it.

Naruto's right arm was non-bandaged, so he used that to wave at me happily, "Hey Takuma-sensei!" he said cheerfully. And he is a true metaphorical sun without a limit, isn't he?

I smiled at him, "Hi Naruto! Are you ready to go on a training trip for the next three years?"

Naruto smiled widely as the last bandage was removed from his leg, prompting him to stand up and jump a bit, "Thanks Hinata-chan!" and Hinata blushed a bit because of the affectionate suffix. Naruto turned towards me again and exclaimed loudly, pointing a finger at me even, "You bet, Takuma-sensei! I'm going to take the ninja world by storm! Believe it!"

I chuckled, "Oh, I believe it alright. Come on, we have to get packing your stuff in your apartment."

Naruto was about to run at me, probably to get to his apartment as soon as possible, but I held up a hand, effectively stopping him. "Give your Hinata-chan a proper goodbye, now! This is probably the last time you'll see her!" I said with a sinister smirk.

Thankfully I didn't have to dumb it down for Naruto to understand my intention, because his blush was equal to Hinata's for a second, before he managed to calm down.

"Come on you two, do it!" I cheered them on as Naruto turned towards Hinata, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. I began to chant and clap and stomp at the same time, 'Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!' over and over again.

It took almost a minute of chanting, but god pays the ones that persevere!

And they kissed goodbye.

Albeit with heavy blushes and some fainting on Hinata's part.

* * *

><p>I somehow managed to drag Naruto away from the actually quite alright Hinata to his apartment, where when we arrived he began packing his stuff.<p>

Meanwhile I stood outside the apartment door, with crossed arms. I waited for my recently summoned shadow clone to fetch my beloved, and violently bloodthirsty, Anko Mitarashi.

I had in fact summoned two shadow clones, one that went to fetch Anko, and the other went to go grab the unconscious Hinata. I had carried her bridal style on the way to the Hyuuga compound, but thankfully she had woken up before I reached it. My shadow clone put her down on the ground, and as we walked towards our destination I had asked her if she wanted to join the training trip.

She had declined.

With reasons I understood, of course! She couldn't, because her family didn't trust me. That was one reason. Another was that I didn't know her family's combat styles, the ones she _had_ to be trained in. She had to be trained in the Gentle Fist style, because her family, 'told her to'. It was to sigh to, really. Such arrogance! It was as if they thought that the Gentle Fist style was the only hand-to-hand combat style out there! Of course not! But I didn't mention those things, of course not! That would be outright rude, and I would rather not be rude to a family that had high positions in the military that I was part of, thank you very much!

Anyway, my shadow clone dispelled itself when 'Hinata-sama', as I teasingly called her after we had arrived at the gate guards, arrived at the gates of the 'legendary Hyuuga''s compound.

And then I got its memories. Not surprising, of course, I had expected such.

And then I got the other clone's memories. It had been pierced in the neck by a startled Anko inside, guess where, a dango store. I had expected that reaction, though, and taped a letter to the back of the shadow clone saying that I wanted her to meet me at Naruto's apartment.

And after three minutes she arrived.

Terribly calm, too. Sober, as well. I hadn't expected that! I had expected more of a drunk Anko! And a drunk Anko is an unpleasant Anko, so I'll just take what I can get!


	20. Farewell Konoha

So, Anko arrived, sombre in mood and expression. It really surprised me, seeing as my shadow clone had surprised her, something she definitely does _not _like. Perhaps she had understood the seriousness of going in that training trip. Hopefully, that is...

"Hi, Shinji-kun," she said bitterly. That was funny, why would she be bitter about something? What would she be bitter about? Really? I say!

"What's wrong, Anko-chan?" I asked, curious for Anko's unusual attitude.

Anko sighed heavily, "I came here to tell you that I can't come with you."

I looked up at her, in wide-eyed surprise. Why in the world could she not come on that training trip I had described on the paper of which I had taped to my shadow clone? I had requested Tsunade about the training trip! I had gotten permission to go, as long as Jiraya was with us! So why in the world would Anko not want to go?

I guess the only way to know is to ask her directly, of course, "What? Why?"

Anko shook her head clearly, probably to clear her jumbled thoughts or something, "... because I have something to do. I can't tell you, I'm sorry." she said morosely.

That was surprising! Since I had removed the Cursed Seal from her she had kept no secret to me, not even one she had personally determined as an unofficial 'S-class' secret! Her past was, after all, _not _something she wanted to discuss!

But that didn't mean I was angry at her for not telling me her secret for why she wanted to stay, oh no! I wasn't some Harry Potter, getting angry at the drop of a hat! Oh my dear lord, no!

I nodded my head slowly in response, "Very well." I said, closing my eyes in the decision to let it go.

Anko's head snapped up to me, and it would meet my gaze had I had my eyes open, "You-You're not angry at me for not coming with you?" she said loudly, sounding hopeful, even!

I chuckled and looked at Anko with adoring eyes, "Of course not!" I grinned, closed eyes and all, "I'm not going to get angry _just _because you don't want to come with me for _three _years!" I smiled, "I mean, three years_ is _a hell of a long time, so I understand your reasons! Of course I won't get angry at you!" I put my hands on her soft cheeks, caressing them lovingly, "I love you, how could I possibly be angry at you?"

Anko smiled and leaned into the touch of my hands. She reached up with her hands and held onto my hands. In a rare moment of affection she leaned forward and captured my lips in a longingly fashion. And it was heated, to say the least!

Hell, I didn't even notice Naruto standing and gawking with a wide-eyed expression on his face at us at all!

All the love that would have gone between the two of us for the next three years was spent between the two of us, kissing as we did.

And before anyone starts puking, let me just say that it was an absolutely fantastic feeling! I could have died then and there, and I would have died a truly and truthfully happy man!Though when Naruto _did _start retching we stopped. Like, immediately.

I looked over to see Naruto on the ground, tears in his eyes from the strain of keeping his food in. He looked up and sighed in relief.

However, I blushed so heavy I thought I'd faint!

Naruto witnessed me making out with Anko! Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit! What if he had somehow managed to capture the moment between us and would use it as blackmail to get me to train him less harshly as I had planned? Or if he told everyone about it and I would become the target for many a tease? It would spell disaster! It can _only _spell disaster! What have I done?

And I promptly fainted from having too much blood around my brain. Which in and of itself is too embarrassing to even think about!

* * *

><p>I woke up with a shooting pain on my cheek. I reached up to caress my cheek, and sure enough I felt my cheek swell. I looked up to see Anko with an satisfied look on her pretty face.<p>

Startled from the hostility I opted to look around instead. I had somehow found myself on Naruto's couch. Huh... why was I here?

Oh... right...

Best not think about that!

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, with a blush threatening to creep up to my face. "So, uh, where's Naruto?" I asked hesitantly. I was hesitant to ask, since mine and Anko's make out session was displayed right in front of the little squirt. It could be that he was sick from it! And then use it as blackmail to gain leverage to whatever he wants to do with me and Anko-

Alright, let us not even _go _there!

"Naruto's in the kitchen, fixing us all some cup ramen. Heh, the last meal we'll have together, huh?" she said ironically.

Last meal? What's up with Anko's morose attitude lately? Something must either have gone wrong or is wrong for her to be so depressed! And when my Anko-chan is depressed I am depressed! And I don't like being depressed!

"Last meal? Is something wrong, Anko-chan? Someone bothering you?" I began to dote on her lovable form, "Are you hurt? Are you sick? Bad dreams, perhaps?" and like that I continued doting on her, and surprisingly, she let me, all with a dejected look on her picturesque face.

Finally, after a minute of continuous doting I stopped abruptly. So abrupt, in fact, that Anko's eyes snapped away from the floor and to me, "Are you dying?" I asked, quite hesitant in knowing the answer to that. If she were dying, then I would be quite unpleasantly _fucked_! And so would anyone who would _dare _sully her name!

Anko's eyes, however, glided slowly down to the floor again.

She didn't say anything.

Nothing at all.

Then she whispered quietly, so quiet that I had to enhance my ears with chakra to catch a glimpse of her words.

Or rather, word.

"Yes."

Silence followed her word. The only thing that broke the silence was the clutter from Naruto's kitchen and the occasional 'Hot hot hot! Believe it!'.

"How do you know that?" I whispered, though loud enough that Anko could hear it. How come that Anko would die? It didn't make much sense at the matter!

"How do you know that?" I said again, louder this time, though. It doesn't make _much _sense, no, it doesn't make _any_ sense _at all_! Why would Anko be dying now? What caused this? What could possibly make Anko die? Anko Mitarashi, former student of Orochimaru, emphasize on _former_, and a former slave to him as well! What could possibly be the reason for her dying?

"I know because my chakra is not coming back like it should!" she said angrily to me. Now that was more like the Anko I knew and loved!

But how come the chakra wasn't coming back? I could only think of one plausible theory for such an event to happen. Only one, and it _did_ seem the most probably...

Didn't make it any less pleasant, though.

The theory I had come up with in that split second was this; I had removed the Cursed Seal from Anko, thus removing a part of her life chakra. Though the life chakra tends to be regenerated, it seems that the Cursed Seal negates the possibility of that to happen. So it seemed that I hadn't completely removed the Cursed Seal after all! But it was such a tiny bit left, how could it affect my dear Anko-chan? Simple; I hadn't been able to remove all the parts of the Cursed Seal! There was still a single component left; the one that sucked out life chakra to convert the life chakra to tainted chakra! That was how advanced the seal was! No, it wasn't advanced! It was actually horribly simple! It was just difficult to remove, is all! And the method I did it in was the inefficient method! How come it was inefficient when it was so complex? Ever heard of 'simplicity makes things easier'? This was one of those cases. Or so it appeared to be. Fuck, why did it seem to be so bad now? It shouldn't be! I didn't want that to happen! Nothing like that!

Curse Orochimaru and his dastardly actions! No, not enough! May he burn in the ninth circle of hell!

I was shivering with rage directed at Orochimaru and my own incompetence for not realizing this when Naruto stepped in to the room.

Oblivious to the dense atmosphere that was practically saturated by my killer intent, Naruto carefully laid all three cups of ramen onto the table and got out three chairs for us to sit on.

"Well, let's eat!"

Naruto snapped me out of my reverie, and he was practically shining with happiness that two of his 'precious people' were in the room with him, ready to share the food of the gods!

I was panting in rage, curse Orochimaru; at a later date! I can curse him to hell _later_! Naruto doesn't have to be burdened by it just yet! Or at all!

So instead, I just grinned at him. I wasn't sure if he noticed that it was a fake smile or not, but I honestly didn't care at that moment.

All I cared about at that moment was having Orochimaru's snake-filled head on a silver platter!

* * *

><p>"Just you watch me!" Naruto held his hand up towards the Fourth Hokage's stoned head, promising that his ascent to Kage level would be successful. And I would be there right beside him when he will become the Sixth Hokage, as his teacher, and hopefully advisor.<p>

But that is all dreams for a later occasion.

Now, there is the trip to take care of.

I was standing right in front of Anko. She looked kind of meek, actually, now that she had a death sentence over her head. And it was all my fault!

Anko seemed to know what I was thinking, because she stepped closer to me and hugged me tightly, "I don't blame you, Shinji-kun. I love you with all my heart. You freed me from Orochimaru's clutches! I will die with a smile, knowing that I am a free woman," she whispered into my ear tenderly, caressing my cheek affectionately.

I let an inconspicuous tear drop from my eye. Anko saw this and kissed the tear away.

Why did such a thing, Anko dying, have to happen I didn't know. All I knew was that I would kill Orochimaru, and make him _beg _for _death_!

Jiraya was talking silently with Tsunade in the background while Sakura, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Hinata and surprisingly Neji said their goodbyes with Naruto. "When we see each other again I want you all to be strong! Like me!" Naruto yelled, holding his arm out for the others to lay their hands on.

Meanwhile I found a bench to sit on, with Anko's head on my shoulder, grabbing my arm as if it were the only thing keeping her on this version of the earth.

Naruto walked up to us, holding onto his backpack tightly, "Ready to go, Takuma-sensei?" he inquired.

I kissed Anko on her forehead before standing up, "Yeah, let's go!" I said, fist-bumping the air with a fake grin on my face. Damn Orochimaru! I would kill him, even if it was the last thing I would do!

* * *

><p>"Are we there yet?"<p>

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

I sighed, "No, Naruto, and if you ask again I won't teach you any wind jutsu for the next week!"

Naruto groaned, "But we aren't there yet!"

I sighed again. A lot had been happening the past week, actually. I had trained Naruto extensively in the use of the shadow clones to help him get better at controlling his enormous chakra reserves. Already we could see improvements, though I did most, if not all, of the training. Jiraya was a truly _horrible _teacher, if his unwillingness to use spare time to train was any indication! Damn the Sannin! Except for Tsunade, none of the Sannin have done _anything _good!

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. What was I thinking? I must be getting pessimistic. Sure, I had good reason to, since Anko Mitarashi, my sexy girlfriend, would soon die. Once again, curse Orochimaru!

But enough about that. I covered my eyes from the low sun. It was getting late, so we had to set up camp soon.

We found a big clearing in the woods. Initially Jiraya wanted Naruto to set up the camp, but I protested, saying that he could just as easy make shadow clones to do that for him. At that Jiraya simply made a quick excuse and went into the forest to do whatever.

While some of Naruto's clones made the camp I went to the other side of the expanse with the real Naruto to train some more.

I gave him an order to create perhaps three hundred clones and I made them all do chakra control exercises for six hours straight, no pauses or breaks. That sure as hell got Naruto tired, I knew, but, one, it would increase Naruto's already impressive reserves. That was his only redeeming quality, his reserves. I intended to change that. And two, the obvious one would be that it would up his chakra control.

* * *

><p>And like that we trained for several weeks. Naruto's chakra control surged from Academy student to high Chuunin level in less that four weeks! Thank goodness for shadow clones, otherwise it would take far longer.<p>

After the fourth week I had him create another one hundred clones. Exhaustion was clear on his face when I made him do so, but in time, he would be used to it. I had those extra clones work on getting the Rasengan right. With the extra chakra control Naruto should be able to use the Rasengan with one hand skilfully enough that when I have him working in Nature Manipulation it'll be a cakewalk!

We travelled slowly, taking our time to get to all the places Jiraya had to go to. We went from Konoha to Tanzaku Quarters at first. That time alone had taken half a week, that was how calm we took our trip.

And when we arrived at Tanzaku Quarters I told both Jiraya and Naruto about my idea to go to Takigakure. Both had readily agreed, albeit Jiraya had done so under the guise of saying that Takigakure had some really good hot springs. Yeah right, he just wanted to look at not-so-clothed women!

* * *

><p>"Alright, Naruto, create five hundred clones this time," I said with fake cheerfulness tone in my voice. I wasn't sure that Naruto detected my sadness, but it didn't matter in the end. My dear Anko-chan had a death sentence hanging over her head, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it! I hated myself for my abilities, or lack of, because of that! Damn Orochimaru for creating the Cursed Seal!<p>

Naruto fist-bumped the air and did the necessary hand seal to create the shadow clones. And out poured hundreds of shadow clones! It was still fascinating seeing hundreds of shadow clones puff into existence, despite me having seen it well over a thousand times!

"Alright Naruto! This time I want you to have seventy five shadow clones working on chakra control," Naruto looked at me weirdly but complied, sending off the required seventy five to random trees to gather leaves. The trees were for standing on anyway, but he had yet to perfect tree walking anyway, and there wasn't any pool of water nearby. "Next, I want two hundred and twenty five to work on the jutsu I taught you before, the Wind Release, Great Breakthrough and Wind Release, Wind Blade! You aren't at the top of the food chain just yet," Naruto groaned in defiance, but complied after a playful glare from me. "The rest will be working on that new jutsu I had you working on!" at that Naruto went from down-trodden to cheerful! He loved the new jutsu I taught him a week ago, the one that was so extremely flashy that even Naruto begged me to teach him it.

The Wind Release, Dust Cloud technique!

And it only required one hand seal, something that Naruto absolutely loved! It required the Bird hand seal! And the result was a wind that could overwhelm even fire if enough chakra was put through it! Sure, there was some dust that had to be consumed first, but it as almost impossible inhaling air without inhaling dust! So therefore the technique basically made you inhale more dust than usual. Usually it would make you cough a little, but with the jutsu in place that wouldn't happen. What a nifty thing, chakra, yeah? I say!

"Now, I want the real you follow me," I waved for Naruto to follow me while the shadow clones went to work with whatever task they were given.

When we arrived deeper into the forest I revealed to Naruto something that would without a doubt change the light of which I found myself in, concerning Naruto's opinion of me.

I was prepared to show Naruto my Rinnegan.

I turned away from Naruto, my back facing him. I dispelled the henge on my eyes, but I had them closed. The prospect of telling Naruto something that could be considered life-changing was nerve-wrecking! Especially since I was considering giving Naruto my eyes at some point!

I rubbed the bridge of my nose. I was frustrated over the fact that it was now or never. Well, better get it over with.

"Naruto, there is something you don't know about me," I said cautiously, still rubbing the bridge of my nose in frustration.

"What is that, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto asked, unaware of the seriousness in the current atmosphere.

I sighed deeply before opening my eyes. When I saw the greenness of thee forest clearly I turned around slowly. When I locked eyes with Naruto he gasped.

And did something I totally didn't expect. But when I think about it, I should have totally expected it.

He jumped for joy, yelling out loud, "You have a doujutsu?_ Awesome_!"

I was stunned, petrified even. Naruto thought it was awesome that I had a doujutsu! That would ease things considerably...

"Naruto, please calm down," I said, still sad by the fact that Anko would still die. Hopefully she would still be alive by the time I came back to the village.

Naruto turned towards me, questionable look on his face, "There was a reason why I showed you the Rinnegan, Naruto," I said sternly.

"What, Takuma-sensei?"

"I would like you to have them."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I'm sorry if it seems a bit rushed at the end! I'll try and _not_ do that later on! I won't promise, though!


	21. Takigakure

"Yes, I want you to have the Rinnegan," I said clearly to Naruto. With luck on my part Naruto would accept. Hopefully Naruto's abilities would soar into new and untold heights! I could go on and on about teaching Naruto the Rinnegan's abilities, the Deva Path's ability, the manipulation of gravity! The Naraka Path's ability, the summoning of the Outer Path, to interrogate! The Asura Path's ability, superb strength and agility! The Animal Path's ability, to summon massive creatures that were nigh invulnerable! The Human Path's abilities, to separate souls from their bodies and read the minds of people, even without their consent! The Preta Path's ability, to be able to seal away all ninjutsu! All abilities were truly fearsome and to be reckoned with! And I have a theory about the Rinnegan. I believe that all Rinnegan wielders are able to learn and adapt quicker than any other shinobi! What I mean is that they will become prodigies effective immediately when they have the Rinnegan!

Just a theory, but a viable one!

I turned towards Naruto, hoping that he would accept my offer. Naruto had this confused face showing. And I just let him think for a few minutes, let him decide whether he wants the Rinnegan or not.

Naruto looked up, determination visible in his eyes, "I accept!" he said loudly, more sure of himself than I ever could!

I smiled widely and clapped my hands together, "Excellent!" then I went through a plethora of hand seals I just somehow _knew_. My guess was that the knowledge was provided by my Rinnegan. I picked up speed as I continued weaving through many hand seals, the only hand seal I didn't need was Dragon, since that was the one that was supposed to manage the transfer. The rest were for simple preparation.

Ram, Boar, Dog, Dragon, those were the last four hand seals required for the transfer of the Rinnegan. And with my pinkies together I tapped Naruto right in between his eyes.

Naruto fell unconscious just as my pinkies made contact with his skin.

I panicked! What had happened? Was that supposed to happen? What do I do now? Do I-

And all of a sudden I relaxed. I don't know why, I don't know how, but I relaxed. Perhaps it was the knowledge, that I had _somehow _gained once again, that Naruto was alright. He was somehow alright, despite falling unconscious.

However, I couldn't resist doting a little on the little guy. I took him into my arms and carried him to the clearing.

And when I arrived I was met with a curious sight. One that I really didn't expect. I mean, it would seem impossible, with Naruto having lost consciousness and all, but the clones were still there, doing what they were specified to do! I didn't understand the reasons for why the clones were still active, and honestly, I still don't, but alas, it didn't matter at all. All that currently mattered was Naruto's well-being.

I put my ear right over his mouth. Good, he was still breathing.

Now to speculate on what could possibly have made Naruto lose consciousness.

There is the obvious one that he had fainted. Out of what can be debated. It could be pain, it could be information. It could basically be anything. My guess would be both the information and the pain of having special chakra manipulate and change his eyes. That would without a doubt be painful, having the Rinnegan somehow forcefully shoved into your very being. And then the extra information! I guess the information comes when I am in need of it, or if I somehow recall it.

I waited for about half an hour before Naruto woke up again. And sure enough, he had the Rinnegan! Imagine the possibilities! Naruto is the only one who has the ability to both have full access the Kyuubi's chakra, the so called Kyuubi Chakra Mode, and has the raw potential to become a true Sage, the so called Sage Mode with Nature Chakra, the third chakra type! The others being Spiritual and Physical! Like Reiatsu from Bleach and Chi from Dragon Ball, combined into one, Chakra!

"Are you alright, Naruto?" I asked. Already plans for the future were going through my head! There are so many changes happening for the Shippuden timeline already by me just _being_ there! What could possibly change? There is the chance that Sasuke will become weaker than Naruto eventually. That alone could change a number of things! Like when Naruto faces Sai for the first time! Sai could become overwhelmed by the sheer power there is behind Naruto's punches and kicks, along with his reaction time being upped considerably.

Naruto will truly become a Kage level shinobi by the time I am done with him!

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm alright," Naruto looked at me in wonderment. I was relieved! Naruto was alright! He hopefully would be alright for some training for the Rinnegan's abilities. The first of which I wanted to test was Animal Path, see if he could summon anything.

"Are you alright enough for some training?" I asked softly.

Naruto looked at me with a smile and nodded, preparing to stand up. Strange, I would have thought he would have jumped in excitement by the prospect of training. But alas, new things happen all the time! Like how I just _knew_ stuff all of a sudden. It was strange, but I attributed it to the Rinnegan.

However, Naruto's enthusiasm, or lack thereof, had me worried, "Are you sure you aren't tired or something?" I asked apprehensively. I mean, it wouldn't do to have Naruto being tired, now, would it? It could be any number of reasons for why he could be tired! Like excess information! But why would Naruto have the information given to him by the Rinnegan in the first place? If that was the case, then why didn't I have the information? It could also just be that Naruto _didn't _have any information given to him by the Rinnegan. That was also a possibility... alright, now I'm embarrassed!

Naruto shook his head a little and grinned at me teasingly, "I'm fine, _mom_!" he laughed out.

Wait, did Naruto just call me _mom_? I am _not _female! "I am _not _female!" I voiced my thoughts out loud, though my face was now sporting a vivid red blush. Damn Naruto and his teases! I am not in fact a female! If I were, I would have had breasts! I looked down, unsure of myself. Sure enough, I had no breasts at all, none to speak of! And my voice was still a lower pitch than that of a woman's! So why in the world call me _mom_?

Because I was doting on him like a mother hen, a small but still truthful voice in my head said, finally finding some leverage to speak out its mind. Not that I had split personality syndrome, mind you! That could be catastrophic to me and my training with Naruto! No offence intended towards anyone _with _split personality syndrome!

Naruto snickered to himself and then stood up, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet, "So, what do you want to train me in, Takuma-sensei?" Naruto asked curiously.

Yes, what to begin with. There was the Animal path that I originally wanted him to learn, but he already _had _a summons! The Toads! Though _I _don't use them doesn't mean that Naruto won't use them! Besides, the Toads are the ones who know of the Sage Mode, not the Rinnegan beasts! So it would definitely be helpful that Naruto is able to summon mindless beasts, but it just wouldn't fit Naruto's style! Naruto should be able to summon creatures that are _willing_ to help him in his battles against what ever opponent is against Naruto! Not mindless beasts!

As I struck a thinking pose I thought about what path I should train Naruto in first. Should it be the Preta Path? The ability to suck moulded chakra is an extremely advantageous ability! I say moulded chakra because there has been an incident where Pain's, or Nagato's if you will, has sucked out Sage chakra. The Sage chakra is Nature chakra moulded. Therefore, I can assume that the ability of the Preta Path is to suck out _used _chakra out of the ninjutsu. It cannot suck out chakra like the sword-that-shaves, Samehada. Samehada eats chakra, no matter if it is moulded or not. Preta Path is a likely candidate for first Path to train Naruto in.

Naraka Path is out of the question! It is simply too immoral! That is the reason I hadn't used it yet! Human Path is also out of the question! The ability to read minds at the cost of stealing a soul cannot be trained in, unless we have people with a death wish! And those are in short supply, you know! Besides, it totally doesn't suit Naruto's style! And it is completely immoral as well, not suited for Naruto whatsoever! So those are out.

The Asura Path is next. No, that one is unnecessary. Strength and agility is granted upon the point of getting the Rinnegan. As in when Naruto gained the Rinnegan he had received the bonuses the Asura Path had. Besides, if Naruto is supposed to be able to use the extra strength and agility coming from the Asura Path he has to be taught in taijutsu. And I can't do that since I suck at taijutsu. So Asura Path is an unnecessary and unavailable path to venture in.

And then there is the obvious choice of Deva Path. The ability to manipulate gravity at a whim, that is the Deva Path. To push and pull anything. The Shinra Tensei, the ability to push anything, is, or will be, the cause to completely eradicate Konoha. A single jutsu, yet it had put a lot of strain on Nagato, but alas, it was still a single jutsu. And then there is Bansho Ten'in, the ability to attract anything! It is, or will be, a participant in the death of Fukasaku, one of the Elder Toad Sages. Sure, the other was the chakra repulsion rods, but apparently that requires the summoning of the Outer Path Demonic Statue, and I hadn't dared do that since I didn't want to become a cripple like Nagato. Deva Path is also another candidate for first Path to train Naruto in.

Now between Deva Path and Preta Path, which one should I choose? Preta Path is extremely useful, but so is the Deva Path...

I sigh in resignation. Nagato's favourite Path it is. "I will train you in the use of what is called _Deva Path_."

Naruto hummed to himself, then he all of a sudden perked up, "What's a Deva?" he asked me.

…

What _is _a Deva, exactly?

I shook my head and bopped Naruto on his head lightly, "I don't know what a Deva is, but don't go asking your sensei useless questions!" I said sternly. However, after I had Naruto stop asking stupid questions – I know, almost impossible to do, but I made it – I explained to him what the Deva Path was.

"Deva Path is the Path of Gravity. I think. The Rinnegan has the ability to manipulate gravity to the point where it can repel and attract everything and anything," I had a small pause for both dramatic reasons and because Naruto should have time to digest information. I looked at Naruto and sure enough he was staring at me in open mouthed awe. I chuckled, "It also has another secret ability – the ability to create a moon!" I said, waving my arms and hands melodramatically up towards the sun. Why? Because it was fun, that's why! Haven't you ever tried being melodramatic? It's fun, to say the very least!

Then all of a sudden I turned serious, "That ability," oh how I loved that word, ability! "Is called Chibaku Tensei."

Naruto gaped in wonderment. I mean, why wouldn't he? Creating a _moon_! How awesome is that? "How is that possible, Takuma-sensei?"

I chuckled, "Well, I personally don't know, I only think it is, but in theory, it should be possible. Now," I clapped my hands together hard, snapping Naruto out of his reverie, "Time to train!" I chuckled ominously, subtly putting Naruto under a genjutsu, one that created thunder and lightning behind me.

Naruto gulped.

It would be one hell of a training if I had to intimidate him into it.

* * *

><p>And it was hell. For Naruto, at least. For me it was as funny as hell.<p>

We had taken our time to get to Takigakure, Jiraya, Naruto and me. That had given us time to train Naruto in the Shinra Tensei and the Bansho Ten'in. I had Naruto create six hundred clones, five hundred now doing Elemental chakra training, applying Elemental chakra to cut a leaf in half, and another hundred training in taijutsu, Jiraya training him in it. Every time Naruto was exhausted from creating the clones he would bounce right back up after a few minutes. It was curious, because that didn't happen before I had given him the Rinnegan. It might be that the Rinnegan not only grants you abilities but also extra chakra! That is only a theory, but it would explain my enormous reserves of chakra!

Speaking of the Rinnegan, when I had informed Jiraya of Naruto receiving the Rinnegan he had been veritably pissed for some reason or other. He had gone ballistic, shooting off unreasonable reason after improbable reason. One describing that 'he should not have a doujutsu! He could be a danger to Konoha if he ever uses it against them!' to which I had replied, 'Can you imagine a Naruto that hates Konoha? No? I thought so!'. Jiraya was beyond any doubt an idiot! He was truly the _dead-last_ in his class of his time if he thought that Naruto would hate Konoha for what it had done to Naruto! Naruto is _the _most forgiving person that has ever existed, to the point where it is a fault, almost! Besides, Naruto needed all the help he could get in order to catch up to Sasuke! And Naruto receiving the Rinnegan is one such thing that could help him do so! If nothing else, then he could it as a counter to Pain, or Nagato, if you prefer that name.

When I requested of Jiraya to train Naruto in taijutsu he had been reluctant. He without a doubt held a grudge towards me. That is another reason for why Jiraya is such a horrible teacher! He cannot set aside differences for the greater good! Alright, now I just sound like _Dumbledore_ from the _Harry Potter_ books, but it's true! If Jiraya won't teach Naruto taijutsu merely because _I_ was the one to request it then Naruto would be doomed in taijutsu! And I would rather lose an arm than for that to happen!

But luckily for me, Jiraya _was_ willing to teach Naruto taijutsu. But I had him train Naruto _only_ in taijutsu. I was a better master in seals than Jiraya, or so I thought at least, and I deemed it useless to teach Naruto seals. Not that Naruto shouldn't know anything about seals but teaching him about it would prove to be for absolute naught. He just could not understand the complexity that is necessary for seals work. He would both have to be serious _and _have a calm hand. Something he lacks both of.

That is not to say that he didn't make progress! His chakra control took another leap when I gave him the Rinnegan. In fact, it became so good that he got the Elemental chakra training down in just one day! After he had over three hundred clones work on it, that is. In fact, his chakra control got _so good_ that is didn't have much room for improvement! Which startled me when I discovered that. Because that would mean that the only reason I had such good chakra control was because of the Rinnegan! Maybe I had a special kind of Rinnegan, one that gave me near unlimited chakra. No, that is improbable! If I had a special kind of Rinnegan then Naruto should have a special Rinnegan too! And as far as we have seen he doesn't have anything exactly _special_ about his Rinnegan. Not saying that the Rinnegan isn't special, because it is!

Anyway, it had taken a week and a half to get from the Tanzaku Quarters to the borders of the Land of Waterfalls while we trained Naruto relentlessly, tiring him repeatedly. Or I think it was called the Land of Waterfalls, it was never really stated as such by Masashi Kishimoto-sama. Alas, I'll just call it that anyway.

When we arrived at the borders by the main road we were stopped by some bandits.

"Give us your money and we'll let you go free! If you don't, well, let's just say the wife will have to get a new partner!" the leader of the bandits leered. It was clearly the leader of the band of misfits who said that.

Obviously, they didn't last long. Because I had Naruto even the odds a little with shadow clones. Which is to say that I had thirty up against three hundred, overwhelming every bandit with ten shadow clones each.

We ended up tying the bandits to some trees. Naruto had really improved in taijutsu, despite all my apprehensions towards Jiraya's teaching. It was as if that as long as Jiraya had only one thing to teach Naruto and didn't focus on _just _using the Nine Tailed Fox's chakra, then he was a competent teacher!

Maybe I misjudged him...

* * *

><p>Anyway, we arrived at the borders of Takigakure after half a day of travelling from the borders of the Land of Waterfalls.<p>

And we were met with a curious sight.

And it was a sight that I should have expected.

A sobbing, green haired girl with an orange hair clip, wearing quite flamboyant clothes, similar to the ones whom I remember as Kazue, from the Bloodline Civil war in Water Country, used to wear. Just white instead of green.

She was leaning towards a tree, hugging her knees. "Familiar sight?" I spoke to Naruto softly, not detaching my eyes from the tanned girl. I turned my head to see that Naruto was not standing beside me, but instead was walking toward the girl.

"Hey," Naruto said hesitantly to the girl. The girl looked up with her orange coloured eyes and panicked at the sight of him. She scooted herself backwards, "Hey, I'm not here to hurt you!" he reached out to grab her, but the girl just scooted herself backwards faster.

Meanwhile Jiraya and I stood stock still, rooted to the spot of which we occupied, sad looks on our faces.

"Who-who-who are you? Get away from me!" she screamed. Strange, it was almost as if she didn't want anyone close to her. Of course I knew who the girl was. What a coincidence that we had met the Jinchuuriki of the Seven Tailed Beetle _here_! But then again, I thought playfully, who's to say that some divine being isn't watching over me right now and conveniently put Fu right there for us to meet?

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki! Future Hokage of Konoha!" Naruto said boisterously. Then he reverted to a calmness that seemed non-befitting of him, "Who are you?" he asked softly, trying desperately to calm the panicking girl.

I had Naruto use the same henge I had used to cover up his Rinnegan, and Naruto thankfully considered it as practice for chakra control, thus he didn't scare Fu even more than he already did by just being close to her.

Fu was shaking heavily from nervousness, and was simply shaking more and more the closer Naruto walked. Even if Naruto took one step every two seconds or so. Eventually Naruto was within arm's reach of her, and all of a sudden-

He hugged her. Tightly.

Then Fu went almost ballistic, "Let go of me!" she screamed, "Let me go!"

And then Naruto began to whisper into her ear, something I decided I would not listen in to. Because sometimes privacy is required. But I saw the effects it had on Fu. Her eyes widened, she gasped, and then she began to cry and return Naruto's hug.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw some people with torches and pitchforks. Apparently it didn't sit well with the local populace that some strangers from Konoha were there to cheer up the 'demon' of Takigakure..

The leader of the mob came closer to us. And now that I had a good look on him I could see that he was a shinobi, judging by the forehead protector on the shinobi's forehead.

I sighed lightly, and held out a hand to stop Jiraya, who had curiously enough taken a threatening step forward to intimidate the mob of people willing to kill off the local Jinchuuriki. "No," I said to Jiraya, "Let me handle this," I said as I took three steps forward. It took three simple steps to stop the mob in its tracks. It wanted blood? It'll get it. It just won't be any of ours!

"Well, who are you? Some sort of demon lover?" the leader taunted. Though he failed to aggravate any kind of emotions from me. Ha! In your face, 'demon' _hater_!

I looked at my nails, and then I looked back at Fu. Sure enough, she was now as tense as a bowstring. I turned my gaze back at the mob leader and smirked, "I don't see seven tails."


	22. Fu And The Mob

The mob leader shinobi got furious all of a sudden, "How-how did you know it was the Seven Tailed Beast?" he shouted. The mob went wild, one was about to throw a pitchfork even.

I chuckled. I wanted to seem as omniscient as possible, merely because it would, one, put me in a better light with Fu, hopefully. And two, it would be fun to see the mob get scared of the all powerful me. "That's for me to know," I smirked. I used a shunshin that didn't require any hand seals whatsoever. Thing was, this version of the shunshin was considerably weaker, and had the shinobi leader not been taken by surprise he would without a doubt know where I would appear. Right behind him. "And you to never find out."

And behind him I was. My back was turned towards the mob and I held a kunai to his throat. I wanted to so badly slit his throat it was almost painful. But patience was a virtue I had. At least at that moment. So I didn't just yet. Besides, the mob could see my forehead protector, indicating me being a Konoha shinobi. It wouldn't be good if I killed a civilian merely because they wanted revenge for their loved ones.

The civilians were stunned by my speed, but the shinobi just turned his head around to face me, "I see," he said, "You really _do_ support the demon," he added calmly. For some reason it really pissed me off, but I shouldn't let it get to my head. It could just as easily be some sort of taunt that should be able to get to me. I shouldn't let it. Nope, it wouldn't.

I smiled once again, only this time tauntingly. And it had the desired effect. The shinobi tensed up even more than he already had from me using shunshin to get behind him and holding a kunai to his throat. Dammit, it was getting really tempting to just get it over with and slit his throat. "Again, I don't see seven tails," I positioned my mouth closer to his head and whispered, "Or in the case of the Seven Tailed Beetle, six wings and a single tail."

The shinobi's eyes widened a bit, "How did you know that?" he asked quietly, almost panicky. Ha! It was fun to see someone panic over something as trivial as a physical description of a Tailed Beast... alright, not so trivial, but still.

I smirked smugly, "That's for me to know and you to never find out," I provoked, saying the same thing I said not a minute ago. The urge to slit his throat was getting extremely tough to resist now. It almost made me shake in excitement.

In fact, it _did_ make me shake. Apparently the shinobi misunderstood it as fear or trepidation for killing someone. He smirked at me, "Getting afraid of taking away a man's life, are you?" he taunted, thinking that he would get away with it.

I let out a shaky breath, letting go of some anxiousness, "Thirty six," I said. I chuckled out loud at the man's lost expression, "That's the number of people I've killed. Both in the Water Country's Bloodline Civil War and the recent invasion of Konoha," I added calmly, stopping my shaking completely. I chuckled ominously at the man's horrified and terrified expression. It was so damn funny, actually. Seeing someone terrified that is. Hell, this particular shinobi's face looked like a mix between constipation and fear. It was an entertaining mix.

I turned my head around to look at the crowd while still maintaining the kunai by the throat of the shinobi. I smiled menacingly at the group of ignorant villagers.

And let loose all of my Killing Intent. Immediately the entire crowd, including the lone shinobi, saw their deaths. Shuriken to the forehead. Kunai to the jugular. A mass of windmill shuriken tearing them apart. Fiendish fire burning their very bodies to ash. Drowning in a watery prison. Crushed by a heap of hard earth. Electrified to death by lightning. Cut up and torn apart by wind blades. Then all of a sudden it stopped. The entire visions of death stopped. And most of the crowd, if not all of them, almost puked their guts out. But they really did vomit their breakfasts out of their stomachs. It gave off a horribly _putrid_ smell. The only one who didn't seem ultimately terrified of his life was the shinobi.

He had only pissed his pants and had used shunshin to get the hell away.

I laughed out loud, clutching my stomach in pain from the laughter. What the hell! Who thought that my killing intent would have such a great effect on the civilians? I sure didn't.

The mob quickly got to its feet and ran back to the village gates, screaming at the top of their lungs 'Demons! All of them!' or something along those lines. I didn't honestly care at that moment.

All I cared about at that moment was Anko-chan's well-being, and as I turned around, I looked at what else I cared about. Or rather,_ who_ else I cared about.

Naruto Uzumaki, and now, Fu.

And before anyone even thinks of it, no, I didn't care about the super-pervert. He can rot in a fire for all I care about. I don't know how you rot in a fire since you'd rather burn, but the super-pervert is known for being able to do the impossible. Like surviving in a battle against Orochimaru in which he lost. I still don't know how he did it. Did he let Orochimaru go? It wouldn't surprise me. But alas, it was not a time for thinking about whether or not Jiraya let the pedophile Orochimaru go or not.

I walked towards Jiraya, who had turned to watch Fu rant on and on about whatever. How the village hated her, how everyone but Naruto seemed to hate her, all the while she was crying. I didn't know it at the time, but while I was 'distracted' from Naruto's and Fu's conversation they had been talking about their jinchuuriki status. Or rather, Naruto had revealed his jinchuuriki status. That had really opened up Fu's mind to Naruto.

"He has really grown up, hasn't he?" I asked Jiraya as I put my hands up my kimono's sleeves. Well, not so much asked than making a statement. I looked at the two fondly. Fu was laughing at Naruto for some reason, and Naruto was looking indignant, cutely pouting as he did. So I could safely assume that it was something that somehow degraded Naruto in a funny fashion.

Jiraya nodded sagely, crossing his arms as he did. "Indeed he has. By the way, Takuma-san," I hummed response, notifying Jiraya that he had my temporary attention, "Was it really necessary to release _that_ much killing Intent? I don't think I have ever felt anything so malicious before," he said, finally turning his head around to look at me.

I answered him with a small chuckle and then silence. It was fun to sound as if I have a hidden agenda behind it all, making Jiraya suspicious of me. It was the only form of entertainment I had right now. Besides watching Naruto and Fu talking with each other.

After a while of silence between Jiraya and me I stepped forward, "Hey, Naruto, girl, are you ready to go?" I called out. I didn't want Fu to become suspicious of me, at least not yet, so I just called her 'girl' for now.

The two jinchuuriki looked towards us and as they stood up I noticed that Fu was holding onto Naruto hand with both of hers. How cute it was. I smiled gently at Fu, and then my gaze turned smug, "Well well well, getting comfortable, are we?" I laughed quietly.

Fu looked down at their connected hands with a bewildered expression, and quite a shy one at that. And with a meek voice she asked, "Of-of course... why wouldn't we?"

Oh, right, isolation from social activities and interactions means stagnated social skills and behaviour! So that means that Fu would not be as socially skilled as most people. Like me. I'm not socially skilled. But I am more skilled in social activities than Fu. At least I _was_ before I came to this world. I don't really know now.

Naruto's gaze went from me to his and Fu's connected hands, and a second after he jumped backwards, away from Fu. "N-n-no! It's not like that, I swear!" he held his hands up, hoping to stem my smugness. He succeeded, but only because Fu looked crestfallen all of a sudden. So I paid Naruto no heed and swept towards Fu. The green haired girl took a step back away from me in fear of me, should I do anything. After all, I had just chased away a mob of ignorant piss-ants, what's to say that it wasn't just to get her alone? But I noticed such, so I stopped three feet away from her. I smiled in a placating manner, "Hey there, girl. My name is Shinji Takuma. What's yours?" I inquired softly.

She staggered and gasped out loud all of a sudden and fell on her butt. She looked at me with extremely wide eyes then pointed at mine. "Wha-what's with those eyes?" she stammered. My eyebrows rose up in astonishment. Could this be? Could she see past my genjutsu? Or could it be that I hadn't used a henge on my eyes? No, that couldn't be true, the mod and the shinobi leader hadn't reacted to them, so that must have meant that I had the henge on.

I said to her, "What do you mean? Can you see past genjutsu?"

She nodded slowly, trying to stand up a little. "Y-Yeah. It's an... ability... I have," she answered to my question.

Ah. I understood what she meant by 'ability'. It was an ability granted to her by the Seven Tailed Beetle. To be able to naturally see through genjutsu, what a magnificent ability. The henge I had on my eyes was a pretty high-end genjutsu, so that must mean that she can see through a lot of genjutsu. Perhaps, if my hypothesis was correct, she was able to see through _any_ genjutsu. That would be useful indeed.

I carefully smiled at her, "That's a very beneficial ability, girl," I then stood up straight, looking directly into her eyes with my Rinnegan. "My eyes are the legendary Rinnegan," I said, trying to sound as dramatic as possible. I even considered putting her on the 'lightning' genjutsu. But then I realised that it probably wouldn't work if she could see through a genjutsu.

Fu gasped again and slowly began to crawl left, towards Naruto. Naruto noticed this and went in to lift her up to her feet. He then proceeded to brush off the leafs and dirt from the back of Fu's skirt. "Be careful where you sit, Fu," Naruto whispered to her, concerned for her. It was a very cute sight, had it been under better circumstances.

All of a sudden my senses blared up. I sensed something approaching. Fast. I turned around, just in time to see a kunai about to slice me. Luckily I made it just in time to do a replacement jutsu, effectively replacing me with a log that suddenly got stabbed by multiple kunai.

I looked out towards the thrower and saw some Takigakure ninja getting ready for a battle. A hopeless battle, at least in my own opinion. I snapped my head to face Fu and Naruto, and sure enough Fu was as tense as a guitar on a bad day, shaking violently. Yeah, it confirmed my suspicions alright. These Takigakure ninja were here to get Fu back to that hell hole some scum consider home.

I diverted my attention back to the Takigakure shinobi. "What the hell was that for?" I demanded harshly, "You could have killed me there!"

The what I presumed was the leader took a step forward, "Give back the girl and you will be able to go back to your homes," he said with a stern tone. It was as if he was talking to a baby. I'd show him that I was far from the stage of infancy.

I looked at him, glaring at him with heavy malice, "Go away unless you want to die," I said, my voice betraying me, sounding almost as filled with rage as the Nine Tails. Almost, of course. The Nine Tailed Beast is rage and hatred given form. Basically, at least. There was far more to it than just _that_.

The leader shook his head, "I'm sorry," not sounding sorry at all, "but I must get the girl and go back to the village," he said with probably feigned tiredness in his voice. Or was it resignation? I cannot tell.

Fu, suddenly having some backbone, screamed to me, "He's lying!"

Her scream startled me from my reverie of rage. Why was he lying? For what purpose? I quickly turned around to face the screaming girl in a fit of shock and soon realized my mistake.

I had my back turned to the Takigakure ninja.

* * *

><p>"No, not yet, mis-ter Shin-ji Ta-ku-ma. Your time is not up just yet," I heard a grinning voice say teasingly. It was strange, it felt almost as if this voice was-<p>

* * *

><p>I woke up with a start, hearing a voice shout 'Ero-Sennin, he's waking up'. Probably Naruto. Damn, my back hurt like hell. It felt like the skin had been shred, the muscles torn and the bones grinded to dust. And that was not even close to how my neck felt. My neck felt as if the very muscles had been torn of and sewn back together haphazardly by a five year old aspiring surgeon that had far too much energy and enthusiasm.<p>

I opened my eyes groggily. Apparently I was lying in a brown futon. What I saw when I looked down at myself was heart-warming. Fu was sleeping quietly and comfortably on my legs with her neon green hair sticking to all ends. So that meant that the one that shouted was Naruto. He was at the shogi door, holding it open for whomsoever was supposed to enter. And in walked the white haired super-pervert, Jiraya of the Sannin with crossed arms, something I suspect he is wont to do. It's strange, though. How all the Sannin only have _one _name. Orochimaru, Tsunade, Jiraya. Sure, I usually call Tsunade as Tsunade Senju, but her grandmother is Mito Uzumaki. So her last name is either Senju Uzumaki, Uzumaki Senju, Uzumaki or Senju. Either way, I don't think it matters much. As long as I know what to call her then I'm satisfied.

I groaned a little, "How long was I out?" I asked anyone within the nearest vicinity. It wouldn't do if I had been out a week or more. Nope, not at all. Because that would mean that Jiraya would have been able to tinker with the seal.

That reminds me. I would have to tighten the seal holding the Nine Tailed Beast some. I would need the key for that. From what I know of, Jiraya had the key to the seal. That would mean I would have to convince Jiraya to summon Gerotora, the holder of the key to Naruto's seal on his stomach.

"Only for a day, Takuma-san," Jiraya decided to answer me when Naruto was sheepishly looking at the ground, tapping it with his foot a little.

Shit, a day is a long time. But still, "It could have been worse," I said. I sat up and then shrugged nonchalantly. "Like I could have died, for example," I added almost as an afterthought.

Jiraya chuckled, "Well aren't you optimistic?" he said teasingly. Ha! He would never achieve the satisfaction of getting me angry! Never! Ever! But alas that is a thought not to be discussed of.

I smiled widely. Of course it was a fake one. One similar to my own trainer, Mei Terumi. One that promised pain and death to whomsoever would be on the receiving end. "Jiraya," he hummed in response, "Shut up. Or I will kill you."

The end result was Jiraya staring at me in wide-eyed surprise with his mouth threatening to swallow a fly or two hundred. And Naruto was on the ground clutching his sides in pain from the laughter. It was a loud laughter, I'll tell you right now. I honestly didn't see what was so funny, but then again, Naruto_ is_ the most surprising ninja of all time. He's guaranteed to make you catch a fly at one point or another. Hasn't happened with me just yet, though.

However, the laughter woke up Fu. Curiously enough she immediately went into a fetus position, sniffling all of a sudden. She must have had a nightmare.

Immediately the three of us were quiet. I guess because I was the closest one we had some sort of silent agreement that I should be the one to cheer her up. And I wasn't about to complain about that.

I slowly but firmly put my hand on her shoulder. She flinched away from the slight touch, hard. I pulled back a little then I decided to just, as they say, wing it. I quickly grasped both of her shoulders in an attempt to calm her. As expected Fu flinched away from the touch, but I held stead fast onto her. I went for hugging her tightly. Thankfully she calmed down considerably after about a minute or two. I waved for Naruto to come closer and to hug her. He did.

Jiraya was merely standing at the door with a sad look on his face, and despite my glare he went off to god knows where. Or maybe it was because of my glare. Mah, many people don't understand my intentions very often, so I tend to just glare at whoever is at the receiving end. It's stupid, I know, I know.

We, as in Naruto and I, just sat there, hugging a distraught Fu. It was the first group hug I had had while I was in the Naruto universe, that much was true. Which was odd, I noticed, because I loved group hugs. But then again, it comes to no surprise, because there haven't been occasions where I could obtain a group hug. But alas, pay no heed to my little rantings.

We were hugging a distraught Fu for seven minutes and six seconds straight. Yes, I had been counting for that period of time. And Fu all of a sudden began hugging back, letting loose another fresh batch of tears. Though it _was_ Naruto who was the target of Fu's current sign of affection. I didn't mind not being hugged, really. Alright, I did mind, just when you take it into context I shouldn't mind. But I won't complain. That's for damn sure.

I took a deep breath. Time to disturb the comfortable silence that has reigned over the jinchuuriki and me, "Alright, where am I again?"

* * *

><p>Apparently I was in one of the rare hotels that didn't mind having a 'demon' in their midst. Though Fu was still overcharged by the owners, she was still allowed to rest there. Besides, it was the super pervert who did the renting, Fu was meanwhile hiding behind Naruto. She was just as small as him, if not smaller. Which was surprising and amusing at the same time, because Naruto was pretty damn small to begin with.<p>

So when I discovered that there weren't people who outright _hated_ Fu I determined that the village wasn't worth the chakra to put behind a massive Shinra Tensei. Like how Pain, or Nagato, I still don't know how to refer to him as, destroyed Konoha.

I was walking alongside Fu and Naruto to go to this council the village had, and along the way I saw several people glare at Fu and Naruto. Though it was clear that they didn't know that they were both jinchuuriki, otherwise their glares would have turned to thrown stones I'm sure.

And channelling Lightning chakra through my synapses, increasing the time I had to react, proved to be highly beneficial when there were primitive ambushes made by some of the more extreme of the villagers. Sure, the ambushes were only thrown stones, but I have never seen so many ambushes in my entire time in the Bloodline Civil War in Water Country like I had there in Takigakure. And I had just been awake for less than a _day_. Of course that was an exaggeration, the number of ambushes a day were about two to three a day, but that was still a lot. We didn't have that problem in Konoha, I believe. But if we did I'd Preta Path them dry, every single one of them. The same goes for Takigakure's shinobi and villagers. Nothing would stand in my way.

Anyway, looking past all the doom and gloom, Naruto, Fu and I were walking beside each other towards the largest building in the village. From what I presumed was an ANBU version of this village gave us a message to head there. He gave as little information as possible, only saying 'The council wants to see you, Shinji Takuma, and Naruto Uzumaki. Take the- take Fu of Takigakure with you' and that was it. Not more not less. What an anti-social creep. But then again, the elite of the elite are supposed to be weapons guided by the leaders of the village, nothing more. If the weapons took human form, then so be it.

We arrived at council chambers after a bit of leading on Fu's part. There was a hell of a lot of noise emanating from beyond the doors, and what I presumed was Jiraya's voice carried heavy weight all of a sudden, and what I assumed was the council quietened down to a naught.

I looked back at Fu and Naruto, and I saw Fu standing slightly behind Naruto in nervousness while Naruto was looking more confident and sure of himself than usual.

Time to go meet whomever made Fu's life hell.

And I knocked once on the doors, only to open them less than a second later.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Cookie to whomever figures out the entity that told me that my time was not up just yet.  
>Oh, and someone (Sayle) said that I was using too many exclamation marks. Is this satisfactory? I hope it is.<p> 


	23. Going To Wave Country

As we entered the council chambers what I saw was a veritable arena. It was as if it was made just to intimidate the ones entering it. The councillors were sitting in a half circle that gradually got higher and higher, with the leader of the village clearly displayed, since he was sitting in the direct front of the podium of which what I presumed was the 'accused' would stand in. To my right, leaning on the wall, lo and behold, was Jiraya of the freaking Sannin.

"Will Shinji Takuma of Konoha and Jiraya of the Sannin of Konoha step forward, please," I heard a distinctly male voice say, yet still softly, kindly if you will. And I was pretty sure the talker was from that original video animation of the original non-Shippuden Naruto canon. I wasn't entirely sure what his name was, though. Shibaki, Shikabu, Shubaki? I didn't really remember at the time that the real name was Shibuki. Oh well. Shit like that happens all the time.

Responding to whomever said the words I stepped forward, motioning for Naruto and Fu to stay put. They both did as commanded, or rather requested, of me. Fu stayed put by the door, the two people by the door glaring at her back but not doing anything, though if I had known about their glares I would have released all of my killer intent upon them. And as I had proven the day before, it was a force to be reckoned with.

I stood beside Jiraya on the podium, when all of a sudden light flooded said podium. Now the entire chambers was dark except the podium of which Jiraya and I stood on.

"Shinji Takuma of Konoha, will you please take a step forward," a stern, and rather harsh, voice said. As commanded by one of the councillors I took a step forward.

"Shinji Takuma of Konoha is present," I said. I wanted to seem as diplomatic as possible, and seeing as the Takigakure councillors favoured saying 'of Konoha' after each and every Konoha shinobi I guess saying it as well would put me in their good books. Probably not, seeing as I had made the 'demon' haters regurgitate their guts out and run screaming out their lungs.

"Shinji Takuma of Konoha," the previously kind voice said, "Do you plead guilty of threatening the innocent villagers of the village of Takigakure?" and that's what he said. Yeah, not so much _innocent_ as guilty. But hey, I was one their home turf, you cannot expect me to be able to fight through everything with only words.

So_ that's_ what got the councillors out for my blood. Just a silly threat I made that if the citizens ever even thought of harming Fu again I would personally kill them. It, as stated, was merely a silly threat, nothing to be taken seriously, but _no_, they _had_ to press charges at me.

"I plead guilty, O leader of the village Takigakure. Might I add how fine your shoes are today? Most pleasing to the eye, yes," I said sarcastically. I swear I saw an anime style tick mark on most of the council members present, and the biggest one of the tick marks was without a doubt on the soft spoken leader of the councillors. Immediately after I noticed that, though, the entirety of the room burst into either a fit of snickers from the people of Konoha – Naruto, Jiraya and me, and hopefully in the future, Fu – or an indignant shout or one of rage. All directed towards me. It felt great to be the center of attention right at that moment. But alas, all good things had to come to an unpleasant end. Like marshmallows. They have to be put above a fire and then roasted before eaten to get that sweet caramel taste they are so famous for. But the taste wouldn't last forever. It had to come to an end. How sad.

I heard a banging sound, wood meeting wood, similar to the hammer of a court judge's. "Silence. Silence! _Silence_!" the kind voice shouted. Or it _was_ a kind voice. Now it was just as harsh and distinctly cruel as the rest of the council members. When the room fell silent the sigh that emitted from the lead councillor's mouth could be heard resonating throughout the entire arena of wood and stone. Especially from the stone. Wood is not as good holding sound as stone.

"This is not the time for jokes! Takuma-san, will you accept any punishment the village of Takigakure will give you?" the previously kind voice said. No longer was it kind, no longer was it harsh or cruel either. Now it was vengeful. Hopefully his 'rightful' vengeance won't include killing me or stripping me of my enormous reserves of chakra.

"Alright," I placated, "It's not a time for jokes, alright alright," I shook my head at both the councillors stupidity and because I needed to clear my head for this. Because it was quite a critical moment after all. Not something well foreshadowed, mind you, but in politics, things rarely are.

"It all depends on the punishment you're willing to dish out. If it is death or sealing away my chakra then I must decline," I said with no emotion at all. I felt that being as emotionless as possible would be beneficial to my cause, whatever the heck it was. Like marshmallows. I had a sudden craving for sweet sweet marshmallows. Mm... marshmallows...

The lead councillor sighed heavily, the sound bouncing off the stones. The stones in particular. As said before, wood doesn't block sound very well. "The punishment is exile. Again, do you accept the punishment, Shinji Takuma of Konoha?" he said quite melodramatically. Almost as if he wanted to sound as epic as possible. He failed. Miserably. Mm... I can't get marshmallows out of my head! They're so delicious!

I grinned at my quite randomly generated and scatter brained thoughts and it showed that entirety that made out the council was quite unnerved by my grin. I noticed, and made my grin take a turn for the malicious. It was fun, seeing all the council members get restless from little ol' me. Ha! It was fun. Really entertaining. I say!

"Sure. I don't care about this village anyway," I said with a wide smile on my face, "It could be exterminated and burnt to hell for all I care about," and the response I got was enormous. The rage – and the puny killer intent from the shinobi within hearing range – was truly felt around me. I was sure that Naruto shrank behind Jiraya, and said super pervert was looking me strangely, as if I was crazy. And given the things I just said, I'd be pretty damn sure I was crazy. But hey, what am I if not crazy?

"_Silence_!" the leader of the village, probably, shouted aloud, banging his hammer onto his table repeatedly. After a few moments of the requested silence the leader spoke with a frustrated tone, "Shinji Takuma of Konoha," he said, "If you are exiled from Takigakure you will not be able to come back. If you do not comply with the exile you will have a public execution. Is that understood?"

My my, that was harsh. Having a public execution merely because I stepped on the wrong toes, the toes of the politically high people that hated Fu for what she contained. What ignorance. I say! I sighed deeply, "Fine," I grumbled a little bit. Now I didn't have time to get those poisons I wanted, neither the forbidden jutsu that Kakuzu had. But then again, that required the sacrifice of several shinobi. Something I wasn't one hundred percent willing to do. Besides, I had enough power as it was, no need to add to it some more

"Good. Now Jiraya of the Sannin of Konoha, please take a step forward," the same voice of the leader said, relieved that he didn't have to deal with such a troublesome person. After all, who would want to deal with someone as stiflingly irritating and perhaps frustrating as me? Definitely my dear Anko-chan- fuck Orochimaru. May he die by getting Amaterasu's great flames up where the sun doesn't shine! Believe it! Dammit, I'm getting to sound like Naruto. Well, that in and of itself isn't that bad, to be honest. Naruto _is_ a remarkable character after all.

Jiraya took a step forward while I walked back to the two jinchuuriki. "That was so awesome, Takuma-sensei!" Naruto whispered to me when I reached him. He didn't want to disturb the tense silence in the room by shouting to the world how ridiculously awesome I was. I saw that Fu was nodding vigorously, threatening to shake her head off. And that she was ridiculously close to Naruto, clutching his arm like it was her only thing keeping death at bay. It was a ridiculous notion, but I wasn't about to begin to judge. "Yes... Ta-Takuma-sensei," Fu whispered hesitantly. I wonder why she did that. Probably nervous to see how I would react to her.

I smiled comfortingly at them both, closing my eyes to signify genuineness. After all, it would definitely not do for either Naruto nor Fu to be doubting me, now would it? Nope, definitely not!

"Jiraya of the Sannin of Konoha," I turned to face the place where the 'action' was. Damn that rhymed. Killer B would love to have that written in his rhyme book. Heck, I believe he would kill to get it. He probably wouldn't, but still. "You have claimed to be able to take Fu out of our hands. However there are things you must know first before you can take such a heavy decision," oh bullshit! How did Jiraya know of Fu's status as a jinchuuriki? I know that Jiraya's information network is nothing to frown at but-

Oh right. I said that I didn't see seven tails when I first met Fu. How... convenient, yes? Oh well, shit, which isn't really shit to begin with, happens. Like Anko-chan's removal of the Cursed Seal. Well, that was shit in its highest degree.

"She is a jinchuuriki. A demon," I looked back at Fu with understanding eyes, but she wasn't looking at me at all. She was looking down on the ground, tapping it with her foot nervously. I decided that fuck it, I would be there for her. I laid a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. Her neck nearly snapped as fast as she turned her head up to meet my gaze. I smiled. I smiled soothingly at her. She nearly burst into tears for some reason and jumped from Naruto to me, hugging me so tightly I thought she might have applied all of her chakra to her arms. She didn't make any noise, no comment, nothing. She just up and hugged me with as much strength as she could, like I was the only life line she had. The only thing keeping the bad things at bay. And in a way, I might have been. I hugged her back.

"I don't care if you're a jinchuuriki," I whispered into her ear assuringly, "I don't care if you're the Seven Tailed Beast reincarnate, I am taking you away from this wretched village. And no one will stop me, Fu. No one," and then she let the tears fall in large quantities. I could practically feel the glares from the councillors, the glares directed at my back. They could only see Fu's arms since I shielded her from the menacing looks. I was _this close_ to just snapping and releasing all of my killer intent to make them all go unconscious or vomit their guts out. Or become paralysed, whichever fits best. Sure, the village would see it as a threat, but before they would be able to apprehend me I would be gone from the country via Hiraishin. Or just a standard shunshin, I don't know.

What I didn't see would have changed the light of which I saw Jiraya. He was letting loose a little of his own killer intent, but not to the point where it was threatening; in fact, I'd say it was minuscule, but only because I had enormous chakra reserves, thus resistant to most killer intents. In theory, anyway. How convenient, yes? Well, not only was Jiraya letting some killer intent saturate the air, he was downright browbeating the council members. It would definitely have been fun to watch. But I was more concerned for the well-being of Fu than something that might have been entertaining to see.

"That does not matter. I, Jiraya of the Sannin of Konoha, agree to take her in as my apprentice," and my respect for Jiraya just shot up by a mile. Not the fact that he had accepted it, but that he was willing to face all the glowering looks and still stand tall was what rose my respect for him.

"Jiraya of the Sannin of Konoha will take Fu of Takigakure as an apprentice. So let it be!" the hammer banged upon its designated spot on the desk, the sound echoing rather loudly across the entire council chambers.

It wasn't strange that none of the stupid councillors had argued about letting the jinchuuriki go. In fact, I found it rather unsurprising that no one had argued. It disgusted me, really. None of them wanted the girl to get a proper life. They probably thought that Jiraya would get her killed somehow. Not that they thought Jiraya would kill her, no, but that Jiraya would have some enemies that would then go for her as a means to get under Jiraya's skin. I would make sure no one would do that. Ever.

What I didn't see was someone who gave a particularly nasty glare at me and whispered something to another councillor. That councillor then went to get out of the room to fetch something – or perhaps _someone_.

I laughed hard when we finally got out of the building of which the council found its spot, "Did you see their faces? Well, no, you didn't see their faces, but still!" I said aloud. Sure, people would start looking at me strangely, as if I was some sort of maniac, but hey, where's the fun in thinking about what other people think of you? Exactly. There is no fun in it at all.

Naruto grinned at me, "You were awesome in there Takuma-sensei! Believe it!" Ah, your verbal tic, Naruto? That is quite an annoying thing to have, yes? It's not something you usually notice though. That in and of itself is annoying, but alas, that is how the world spins around. One day at a time. The earth, that is.

I smiled at Naruto, "Why thank you Naruto," I said with my arms in the kimono sleeves. You would have thought that I would have to buy a new kimono or something, but strangely enough I didn't have to. It always fixed itself and cleaned itself eventually. Probably because of some advanced, or rather simple, seal that was applied to the kimono. But either way, I wasn't about to complain about it, oh no. It had saved my ass more than once. I think... never mind.

I turned my head towards Fu with a concerned look on my face, "How about you? Are you alright?" I asked of her. After all, it wouldn't do for the topic of the discussion between the council of Takigakure and Jiraya and me to not feel any satisfaction from the political beat down the ones that hated Fu had received. Or I think it was a beat down. I don't really know. And at that point I couldn't really bring myself to care too much.

Fu nodded gladly, disregarding all the glares she was getting from the local populace, "Yes, you were cool in there," she said. She stayed close to Naruto. Naruto didn't seem to notice it at all, preferring to look in amazement at me instead. I don't blame him. I am, after all, awesome. Well, good to see that my confidence isn't lacking just yet. I miss Anko-chan. She could get me out of my doom and gloom easily. By just hitting me on the top of my head. Fuck Orochimaru, may he burn in the ninth circle of hell...

Alright, time to get out of this stupid village.

* * *

><p>We set up camp in a clearing just outside the forest of which the village of Takigakure found itself. The sun was still in the middle of the sky, but I managed to convince everyone that there wasn't any hurry to go anywhere. Because really, there wasn't any hurry at all. I immediately began to teach Fu the shadow clone jutsu after we had all set up the tents. She had taken to using shadow clones like a sponge to water. It made Naruto absolutely ecstatic that there was someone else like her. A jinchuuriki, a shadow clone user and someone hated by their home village. While Naruto did have a friend in some people, like Iruka Umino, Teuchi Ichiraku and his daughter Ayame, and the Third Hokage, to take but a few, Fu had none. Not that I knew of. And now that someone was willing to take her as she was, and not pity her for the demon she contained, she was happy. Truly happy, that she had found a friend after all those years. After all, she deserved it. It was the least of what she deserved, I think.<p>

However, Fu was only a natural at doing jutsu that required large amounts of chakra. Her chakra reserves were enormous, on par with Naruto's, but her control was shot to hell because of the Seven Tailed Beast she had inside her. In fact, I would go on a limb and say her chakra control was _worse_ than that of Naruto's when he was still disliked by Iruka. And that was _many_ years ago.

So to fix that I had to train her in the use of shadow clones. Sure, it had taken an hour to get her to four hundred clones, but it had paid out when she was training just as vigorously as Naruto on a good day. It was amazing really, seeing over a thousand clones working together. Strangely enough Fu was better at taijutsu than Naruto, even when she was not educated by the academy instructors. Fu justified this when I asked her, saying that she had a lot of practice watching people do the real thing and copying. She stated it was another ability she had, copy styles. Not to the extent of the Sharingan, which I had later discovered, but it was still there. Which was probably why she was soaking up all the things I was teaching her so quickly.

That was not to say she didn't have her own problems. She frequently tripped when I had Naruto and Fu spar in taijutsu, and since her chakra control was next to nil, even with the help of shadow clones, she really couldn't do genjutsu. Which in and of itself would be a bad thing, but it wasn't because of her ability to see through genjutsu. I hadn't tested the extent of her ability to see through genjutsu yet, but I was pretty sure she could see through high-end genjutsu. The genjutsu I had used on my eyes were after all quite high in the ranking. It was on the rank of A-class, I think. Either way, I hadn't been able to test it, but I guess it would all come on its own eventually.

I had suggested as the moon came up that we should go to Wave Country. Since everyone was sleepy they all agreed. Well, Fu didn't care. As long as she was around Naruto, Jiraya and me she would be happy.

* * *

><p>It had taken us over three weeks to get to Wave Country. All the while we, as in Jiraya and I, had trained both Naruto and Fu in chakra control, taijutsu – that was what Jiraya exclusively taught them both in – ninjutsu and genjutsu. We essentially trained them in all the commercial aspects of being a shinobi and had them perfect it. Eventually, when we reached the Wave Country, Fu's chakra control was becoming on par with the Rookie of the Year's average chakra control. And that was only in three weeks. Naruto's chakra control was equal to mine already, but you could never have too good a chakra control. Though I only had the original Naruto train in the art of controlling his chakra now, though. Otherwise it would have been a waste of time. Fu's progress sky-rocketed from the <em>worst<em> of Takigakure to being probably the only one with the potential of getting to Kage level. Well, looking past their missing-nin Kakuzu, of course.

The first week was hell for Fu. Well, not really, because by the end of each day she had a smile on her face before she went to bed. Her chakra control was the _worst_ I had seen, even worse than Naruto's. But after six days her control of her chakra went up by a lot, let me tell you that. It was on par with the average academy student after those six days. Though I had her use over three hundred shadow clones train in chakra control _alone_. Which was a lot, that was for sure.

The second week was better for Fu, but since she was tired all the time I had to carry her on my back half the time. The other half was spent with her training to get the chakra control up to par with the rest of us. Though that seemed to only encourage her to do better. Which could only be a good sign. And I was pretty sure Fu was looking at Naruto more times than I cared to count. Hopefully she won't be developing any kind of hero worship, because _always _ends _absolutely well_... not.

The third week was mostly spent training Fu's and Naruto's muscles up for taijutsu. I mostly oversaw the training for the taijutsu while Jiraya actually sparred with them. It was amazing actually. Jiraya had offered to train me as well in taijutsu, but I declined the surprising, and kind, offer. I just simply sucked too much to do anything to remedy the skill, or lack of, I had in hand to hand combat. Instead, I had him spend his time training Naruto and Fu in it. Much more efficient than try to get me interested in taijutsu.

When we arrived at the bridge of Wave Country we all got to tease Naruto a little over the name of the bridge. 'The Great Naruto Bridge', it was called. And what fun we had when we had teased him in it. Heck, even Fu was teasing him because of the bridge

"Oh come on! It's still awesome that they did that," Naruto pouted, crossing his arms in a moment of great defiance. We had been teasing him relentlessly about the bridge, but it seemed to have the opposite of the desired effect. It really just boosted Naruto's ego to immense levels. Which wasn't saying much, actually. Naruto never let anything get to his head, he always treasured everything he had in his grasp.

As we got closer to the island of which the village of Wave Country was situated we saw that the bridge was heavily populated around of. There were shops ready to serve at the whim of the customer, restaurants willing to sell away their intricately prepared food, ramen stands-

And as soon as we had gotten past the first stand for ramen Naruto was gone.

* * *

><p>I had Naruto direct me to the graves of Zabuza and Haku with a shadow clone, while the real him along with Fu and Jiraya got to see Tazuna's family. When we reached the graves Naruto asked of me, "Well, here's the spot. What is it you want to do with it, Takuma-sensei?"<p>

I sighed, "I just want to pay my respects," I said after a moment of silence, "After all, it's not always someone is able to avoid hell by just having a heart," Naruto stared at me with confused eyes, but I just told him to dispel that shadow clone. The shadow clone followed my inquiry after looking at me strangely again.

Well, I thought as I clapped my hands together, time to get the sealing equipment out.


	24. The Inner World Of A Jinchuuriki

**REWRITTEN THE END OF THE CHAPTER:**

* * *

><p>I went into the house of which Tazuna's family resided in. I had sealed off the bodies of Zabuza Momochi and Haku. It had been a long process, nearly taking six hours. Hell, the sun was almost about to set. I had, however, sent a shadow clone to notify them that yes, I was fine. That nothing was wrong. It was mostly Fu who needed the confirmation, really. She seemed very disturbed over the fact that I hadn't been with them to Tazuna's house. Naruto and Jiraya weren't truly worried, having seen the extent of which I could do. After all, I was basically a chakra monster, having Tailed Beast level chakra and all. Though only Jiraya knew of that little fact.<p>

The response I got was one I should have expected. Fu ran up to me and hugged me tightly while Naruto shouted, "Takuma-sensei is here!". Jiraya just chuckled at the sight of Fu letting a few distraught tears fall. She really was a cry baby. Hopefully the incoming war between the Five Shinobi Nations and Akatsuki will fix that. Wars usually hardens the spirits of every person. Not that I wished for Fu to experience the hardships of war, no. I just hoped it would fix Fu's little problem with crying. But I wasn't about to say anything about it. She deserved it. There was still a long time to go before the Fourth Great Shinobi War would come. So there was time to mend it.

The woman of the house, Tsunami I think her name was, turned around from the sink on the other side of the room to face me. She gave a big smile and a slight bow before turning again to do whatever it was she was doing. She was probably doing the dishes, but I wasn't about to say anything that could potentially provoke the righteous anger of all women abroad.

I watched as Fu, who went to sit beside Naruto and hugged his arm, and Naruto went into a debate about who was the better ninja. It was between Jiraya or me. I was betting on Jiraya. He had far more experience and was better at the taijutsu department. Better at taijutsu by far. Hell, pardon my French, but I would go out on a limb, though I wouldn't actually sacrifice a limb, and say that he was even better than Orochimaru at taijutsu. Just barely, but still better. I'd also say that Jiraya was essentially better than me in all aspects of being a shinobi, except maybe seals. And that's a _big_ maybe. Jiraya possibly had a larger jutsu library, but I did have a _lot _of jutsu in each and every one of the five elements, so that is another tie there. Genjutsu is an obvious win for me. I am a capable genjutsu artist, better than most, Mei has told me. But then again, I merely visualized the results, and bam! Instant commencement of nasty genjutsu! I particularly loved the one I created myself. I had tested it out on several ninja during the Bloodline Civil War, and the impact it had on the various bloodline haters was immensely satisfying. It had the capability to turn the victim's brain into red bean paste, basically. I called it 'Genjutsu Release, Great Viewing of Hell'. The name itself didn't sound too impressive but then again, it was supposed to be underestimated. Look underneath the underneath, as Kakashi is wont to say.

"Kids," I interrupted, when the discussion finally got heated enough to get Fu out of her shy shell. Fu was siding on my side for some reason while Naruto was siding on Jiraya's for a reason that eluded me. It could not be healthy for Jiraya's ego to be inflated even more than it already had been. Both Fu and Naruto turned towards me when I interrupted them. "Let's just agree that _I_ am the better ninja and settle it from there,". It was good to see that my own ego wasn't too hurt in the process of the discussion. I noticed that Jiraya noticeably deflated after what I had said. And not only Jiraya but Naruto as well. Fu was merely blushing for some reason and hid her face with her hands.

"Now now, Takuma-san," Jiraya said, tilting his head towards me to show that he was talking to me specifically, but still facing the kids, "You should let the children do what they want to do. Besides, we all know _I_ am the better ninja," he added almost like an afterthought, like it was common knowledge. Oh no he didn't! He did _not_ just try and deflate my own ego when it in and of itself is not particularly high, because of Anko's regular pounding on me- damn Orochimaru to the _tenth_ circle of hell! Twice! Thrice!

I glowered at Jiraya, "What was that?" I hissed, strangely reminiscent of Orochimaru's own hiss. I was so pissed at Jiraya that I even let loose on a teeny tiny little bit of my killer intent. Which was equal to that of a standard Chuunin, actually. Which wasn't much, but it was enough to get the required message across. And was it received. Jiraya stumbled a little over the killer intent, almost tipping his bowl of food that I had precariously missed during the entire debate. He coughed into his hand, and despite me being smaller than him, was still very much intimidated by me. All the while Naruto and Fu snickered at our little exchange. Yes, even Fu snickered, despite being as, if not more, shy than Hinata on a bad day.

"We-Well, I _do_ have more experience than-" I interrupted him before he could even finish his sentence. I know it was rude and all, but I couldn't resist it.

"Do _not_ try and justify it, Jiraya of the Sannin," I said loudly. I pressed a finger onto his nose and glared at him heavily. And as extra measure I directed a little more killer intent at him, now equal to that of a Jounin. I reminded him that despite the lack of experience I would still win in a fight to the death because of my huge amounts of chakra. And because I had the Rinnegan, let us not forget something as important as that.

Jiraya backed up and put his hands up in a placative manner, "Now now, Takuma-san, no need to be so violent," he reached into his backpack and took out a book, "Here, try reading this! This might help you a lot in our future travels," he said pleadingly. It was as if he was giving me an offering of peace. There wasn't some type of war between Jiraya and I, no. Jiraya must have misunderstood that. But alas, things like that happen.

I sighed and turned around to look at the book.

It was Icha Icha.

I took the book.

And threw it _hard_ on Jiraya's face. What the fuck, excuse my French, but what the fuck did he take me for? I am _not_ some form of pervert, thank you very much. I have already been together with Anko so I know about the birds and the bees. Though I know that Naruto and Fu don't know about it, I don't really think it should apply to them until they were at least eighteen! Only then may they know about it _and_ do it... _and _looking past scarring you for life, I really do think that Jiraya was an idiot for giving that book to me. I am not a pervert like either Kakashi or himself. And I decided to voice my thoughts, "What the fuck is wrong with you, Jiraya?" I screeched at him.

Jiraya was currently too busy holding onto his consciousness than trying to answer me.

* * *

><p>I tried to sleep in the futon I was given. But apparently Fu was too busy trying to evade the creatures of nightmarish hell. And I couldn't sleep if Fu couldn't escape from the creatures. Or I thought they were creatures, and in plural, because Fu was tossing and turning like a rag doll whose strings were cut and reattached constantly. She was shivering, so it might have been a cold nightmare. Or a really hot one. Depends on the inner world she has.<p>

I sighed deeply and stood up. If Fu had a nightmare then I would be there in her state of unconsciousness to make sure those demons of nightmares would never ever have fun in her mind. Ever again.

I took hold of Fu's shoulders and immediately she responded by opening her mouth in a silent scream. She opened her eyes but they were unseeing. But that was alright, all I needed was eye contact to ensure that I could go into her inner world.

* * *

><p>And the inner world was chaotic, to say the very least. There were people everywhere, every one of them yelling something incomprehensible. Sometimes I could pick out snippets, like 'Demon!' and 'Die!' but essentially the crowd's voices were all blurred together. The buildings the crowd was in between were decrepit, old buildings. They were basically on the verge of collapse as dilapidated they were. And that was not talking about the sky for that matter. The rain was ever present, hailing down onto the crowd below, but the crowd paid it no heed. It was as if they were in a trance of rage, all directed at something. Or some<em>one<em>. The rain was curiously coloured a golden colour, though. I wondered what it was that made it such. And the sun peeked ever so slightly from the clouds, emitting a sun ray that refused to fade away. As I looked up the sun I saw something very curious. It was the faces of me and Naruto and Jiraya, all huddled together and smiling kindly. Very weird, but then again, inner worlds rarely make any sense. I assumed that, at least. I had only one experience with travelling another's inner world, and I hadn't been able to get into mine, and I honestly don't think it would be a pleasant experience.

I walked towards the place where the ray of sunlight hit. The crowd dispersed around me, but they didn't turn towards me, instead opting to still all turn in one direction and hypothetically screaming their lungs out. And they were all turned towards the direction of which I was walking in. Eventually after walking for quite a while I saw a sight that tugged onto my heart strings relentlessly.

Fu was there in the middle of the sunlight, leaning towards the most run-down building I had ever seen, hugging her legs and burying her face in her knees. She didn't look up, not even as the crowd began to shout even louder than before as I approached her. Someone in the crowd had thrown something, and it mysteriously disappeared just before it hit Fu. It literally exploded into dust and became lighter than air, floating up into nothingness.

I stepped closer to her. When I reached within arm's reach of her I kneeled down. All of a sudden the crowd went silent. I turned my head around to see that they merely didn't emit any sound, they were screaming relentlessly, more vigorously than before, but they made absolutely no sound whatsoever. I turned back to face Fu to see that she had gotten really tense. I placed a hand on her shoulder slowly, to ensure that she didn't flinch _too_ hard when I put my hand on her shoulder. She did flinch, but just barely.

Then she looked up. Her eyes were squinting, but it was clear she had been crying as they were red and puffy. She had tears running from her orange coloured eyes, and her green hair was a veritable mess. However, despite all this I smiled benignly at her. She smiled back ever so hesitantly.

"Don't worry. They will no longer have any influence over you," I told her. I stood up and stretched my arm and my hand for her to take. She looked at me, amazed by the fact that the sun, that strangely consisted of my, Jiraya's and Naruto's heads, was shining behind me. She took my arm, not breaking eye-contact with me for a single moment. I lifted her up to her feet, "They may be in your past, but do not look there. They may be in your present, but do not look there. They may be in your future. But shove them out of the way. No longer will their hold on you be!" I finished, and as I turned around I gave a mighty roar of "Begone!", directing my shout towards everything not Fu. Every person, every building, every torch, every pitchfork, every single stone, every single grain of dust suddenly got up and vanished. Even the dark and grey clouds vanished, only for the sun to now shine on an empty clearing, with access to the wide open sea, and the lush forests to the opposite side. In short, it was the perfect place to build a small settlement.

I turned around to face Fu. And sure enough she was hypothetically bawling her eyes out. She shouted and screamed, letting all her sadness, all her grief, all her sorrow out for the world to see. Or in this case, all for me to see, since not even her nightmarish crowd of demonic people were here to see her crying. I took hold of her shoulders and as soon as she snapped her eyes to me she hugged me for dear life. "I-I'm s-s-so so-sorry, Ta-Ta-Ta-Takuma-sensei!" she somehow managed to sob out through her anguish.

I stroked her neon green hair as I shushed her, "Don't worry, little one. You have absolutely_ nothing _to be sorry about. Nothing. Everything is alright because you are now fine. You're alright, nothing is wrong. I am here for you, always. I will always be there for you," I said to her serenely.

And we just stood there, both hugging each other, with the sun finding a new position in the sky, it shining directly onto us. We stood there for what I presumed were hours upon hours. Which in reality would be a few minutes, since the brain can work faster than what we regularly use them for.

"Well," I said softly to Fu. She had cried her tears away, no longer needing them any more. "I think it's time to get out of here, don't you think so, Fu?" I asked of her lightly. Fu nodded slowly, but she didn't let go of me, opting to bury her face in my chest.

* * *

><p>I could finally get some sleep. I looked down to see Fu sleeping with a small smile on her face. At least she could get some sleep there. I couldn't sleep. Especially now that it about to be daytime, with the sun peeking past the horizon. How unfortunate. I didn't know we had spent<em> that<em> much time in Fu's mind. Or maybe, and this is just a theory, Fu's mind was working the other way around, the speed of which time flew in her mind meant that time flew faster than reality.

Oh well, I thought as I stretched out any kinks I might have had, it could have been worse. That I couldn't sleep, ever, like Gaara. That would be horrendous.

I walked down the stairs to see that no one was up. Oh well. I sat down by the table and folded my arms together for my head to lay down on. I was tired, I hadn't slept well for about... one day. Shut up, I needed the sleep. I have never been much of a person who could stay awake for long periods of time, so I guess I could just caught some sleep then and there. It wouldn't do to be tired when I would train Fu and Naruto in a new jutsu, now, would it? And it technically wouldn't be a jutsu. It would be Elemental chakra training. I know that Naruto has already received one, but you cannot ever be too good in chakra control and Elemental chakra control. Hopefully Wave Country had some sort of shop that sold Elemental chakra paper. That would be really helpful in getting to know Fu's element. There is the possibility that since she has the Shichibi, the Seven Tailed Beast, she would have Wind affinity. That would be helpful in sparring against Naruto. He would have a definite match then. But first things first-

"Takuma-sensei?" someone said behind me. Now judging by the pitch, I would have to say it was a girl. I turned my head around, and sure enough, Fu was standing behind me, holding a dainty hand on her chest. She was blushing extremely vividly for some reason.

"Hn?" I responded. I would like to know what the results of the mind wandering was. It could be detrimental, but also beneficial. Detrimental in the sense that I had removed some of her memories. Well, actually, that would be good in a sense. Beneficial, in the sense that she would no longer have any nightmares. I would go on the hypothetical limb and say that nightmarish monsters had probably plagued her dreams for quite a while now. That would not be good, for training nor social activities, something she already is very awkward at, more awkward than Naruto. Not that Naruto is awkward or anything, mind you, just that Fu is awkward herself.

Fu blushed an interesting shade of red and diverted her eyes away from mine, "N-Nothing," she stammered. That was to be expected, really. Her blushing and stammering, that is. Not that I wanted it, but I wasn't about to scold Fu for not doing as I wanted her to.

I smiled benignly at her and then turned around again to sleep.

And I did fall asleep.

* * *

><p>"Takuma-sensei! Wake up!" someone shouted directly into my ear. Dammit Naruto, not now. I waved him off, groaning as I did.<p>

"Not now," I said tiredly. How long had I been asleep? Fifteen minutes? Three hours? Hopefully three hours, that means I had gotten some sleep into my brain. Sleep really helps cognitive thinking, trust me on that.

"Takuma-san, I think it would be wise for you to wake up," a person said. That person turned out to be Jiraya of the Sannin.

But I didn't care about that. I just wanted to catch up to some sleep.

"Takuma-san, Fu is gone," Jiraya said.

Immediately I shot up, fully awake. "Fu is gone?" I said quietly. Why would Fu be gone? Where would she be? Could she have sent a shadow clone after me to get to know where I have been? Dammit, I should have known she wouldn't be coming downstairs just to see where I was. She could be caught by Akatsuki-

Akatsuki! Where could they be? They had been chasing me a while back, when Naruto, Jiraya and I were looking for Tsunade. Fu would not stand a chance against any of the Akatsuki members, maybe except for White Zetsu. She could probably do some damage on Hidan, but she would lose if they were on a fight to the death.

I turned around to face the grimly faced Jiraya, "Where is she?" I demanded of them, as in Naruto and Jiraya.

"We don't know, now calm down, Takuma-san," Jiraya placated, but it was for naught. I immediately used shunshin to get out of the house. As I expected, the sun was still bathing this side of the earth with sunlight. I looked around the house.

There! Footprints leading away from the house! Time to get hunting.

* * *

><p>Jiraya and Naruto had followed me out of the house and as I followed the tracks. I was frantic, searching for Fu. I had channelled chakra through my eyes to enhance the eye-sight, making me able to see the tracks even better than before. I was panicking, up to a thousand possibilities playing out in front of my eyes every split second, each worse than the last.<p>

Finally I found her.

Slightly beaten, bloodied, but relatively alright.

Just from the fact that she was unconscious.

I did in fact notice that some of members of the Akatsuki were surrounding her, facing me. It made me wary. After all, Fu contained one of the more powerful Tailed Beasts.

Now for the Akatsuki members there was Hidan, Kakuzu and, strangely enough, Konan and whom I without a shadow of any single doubt was Pain, formerly known as Yahiko.

Seems like they brought out the big guns to fight me.

I stood in a tense position when Naruto and Jiraya entered the small clearing we stood in. "Jiraya-san," I said, snapping Jiraya's attention to me after being absolutely shocked from seeing Konan and Yahiko, whom had the Rinnegan. "Please take care against the blue haired woman and the other Rinnegan wielder," I told him seriously, not moving my gaze away from the Akatsuki members.

Hidan was looking veritably gleeful at the notion of having a potentially terrifyingly powerful opponent. I'd even say that he was giddy in anticipation. Of course he'd be. He loved fighting. It was his life. It was like there was nothing else for him _but_ fighting. Which honestly doesn't surprise me at all. Kakuzu, Konan and the deceased, but controlled, Yahiko all shared the same impassive faces. It was pretty damn impressive, actually. Sharing the same faces, that is.

I tensed up a little more as Hidan began to speak, "Hey, Kakuzu, can I kill this guy?" he grinned widely as he said that.

Kakuzu merely grunted out, "Sure, but leave his head be. He has a bounty of over thirty million ryo for his head alone."

…

I have a bounty? My initial thoughts would have been 'awesome!' and 'What?', but now I could only see trouble. Kakuzu would really want to kill me now. He would probably put out all the stops in order to kill me, going for close range fighting. I'd have to avoid them at all costs, channelling Lightning chakra through my brain to enhance my thought processes, thus improving my reflexes to the point where it would be unnatural even.

"We are not here for the bounty, Kakuzu. We are here for the Shichibi jinchuuriki and for Shinji Takuma's death," Pain said coolly. Konan was quiet, silent even. Not making a single sound.

That confirmed it, Akatsuki had realized what kind of a threat I was. And that was definitely not good.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Once again, I am sorry that the ending seems rushed. And I will be putting the story on a temporary hold. I'll start with writing a Bleach fiction with the reliable help of revan193. It'll be up and coming in a few days. Hopefully... but I won't abandon this story! This story is a lovechild between me and my inspiration! I will not abandon it!


	25. Third Encounter

**Author's Note: **Beware, there is a bit of graphic violence and gore in this chapter. Just skip the lines, it's not that important to know anyway.

* * *

><p>And then Hidan suddenly charged at me, intent for getting my head on a silver Jashin platter. I did not want that, not one bit, so I jumped and twisted myself out of the trajectory of the thrown multi-bladed red scythe. The reason for why it was red was probably because it had been bathed in blood to begin with.<p>

I did not avert my eyes away from Hidan, but from his motions I could see that he was about to pull on the thick wire that was connected to his triple balded scythe. As he pulled on the wire I reached behind me with another arm, not breaking eye-contact with the silver haired maniac.

"Shinra Tensei," I muttered lowly. I got the effect I so desired for. Hidan, with wide eyes and mouth agape, was flung _forwards_ as he rapidly approached me against his will. I clenched my hand into a fist, preparing to plant it into Hidan's face. I enhanced all my muscles to the point of superhuman stuck to the ground with chakra. The result was devastating. Hidan was sent tumbling down the ground after I had punching him hard in the jaw, landing near Kakuzu in a fashion strangely similar to how Deidara was punched out. Strange, it was.

Hidan got up groggily and rubbed his jaw. "Damn, that was a fucking hard punch there, asshole! Nearly fractured my jaw and everything," he complained before he suddenly began to grin, "I like it!" he said loudly. He threw his head back and began laughing.

What a creepy guy. He likes pain, right? I wasn't exactly the fan of Hidan, despite his craziness and absolutely hilarious laugh.

I saw out of the corner of my eye that Jiraya was loosing, badly, to Pain and Konan, though the two of them didn't seem that well off either.

I turned my gaze back to Hidan and Kakuzu, only to see a hand attached to thick black threads storming through the air to get a hold of me. Oh shit! What do I do now? The hand belonged to Kakuzu, that was without any doubt! But what should I do if he got a hold of me? I needed to get away from it! Somehow! Or somehow get _it_ away from _me_! I didn't know how, but as the hand neared my head I used _something _that had _something _to do with my eyes since it hurt a little from some kind of strain to make the hand along with some of the long lines of threads attached to the hand disappear into a vortex of space and time.

Too startled by the event I didn't notice that another hand attached to black threads had emerged from the ground until it grabbed hold of my ankle. I gasped in surprise from the touch and tried to wriggle my way through the bind. Alas, it was not to be, since Hidan was charging at me with his scythe held up high above his head, ready to strike me down in a most lethal manner.

I didn't want that at all! This was not supposed to happen! What do I do now? I need to do something, because if I don't I would die!

All of a sudden some sort of large silver coloured transparent to the bone arm grabbed hold of Hidan's scythe and held it steady. Once again my eyes ached a little, and I swear a trickle of blood leaked from them. I couldn't properly see whose arm it belonged to, but I was forever thankful for him. Or her, depends on the gender of the owner of the hand and arm. The other silver arm took hold of the scythe and threw it away in a mighty throw, nearly impaling Kakuzu in the process, had Kakuzu not sidestepped. I didn't dare to look whom the arm belonged to at that moment still, but the silvery arm dissipated mysteriously into nothingness, and I was alone with the Zombie Combo again. Dammit, couldn't that silvery bastard or whatever hold on for a little longer?

Hidan stared wide eyed at the display that had occurred in front of him, even though he was still grinning like a mad man caught in a candy bar. Kakuzu though was frowning quite heavily.

"What was that?" he demanded of me. He probably thought it was some jutsu and that I would extend him the common courtesy of letting him know what kind of jutsu it was. Yeah, big fat chance on that, Kakuzu!

"What are you talking about?" I shot right back at him.

"That jutsu... it was similar to the Uchiha's Susanoo when I first saw it. But only one who possesses the fully awakened Mangekyo Sharingan is able to wield the Susanoo. You don't even have the Sharingan," Kakuzu claimed. He claimed that the transparent and silvery arm that just saved my ass was Susanoo?

Yeah right, as if. The Susanoo is a Mangekyo Sharingan exclusive technique that is said to be rare even among other Mangekyo Sharingan wielders, I thought to myself, though the thoughts sounded almost as if I wanted to reassure myself over the possibilities. But if it were true, then I would definitely kick ass! Just think about the possibilities! I could be at the Five Kage Summit and battle Sasuke to the ground in a Susanoo based battle. I could exterminate the entire Akatsuki and just let time flow from there. I could do so many things if what I was currently theorizing was true. Like if Susanoo is available then that must mean that both Tsukiyomi and Amaterasu, perhaps also Kamui and that Space-Time migration that Madara uses along with Koto Amatsukami, the ability to convert others to your cause by the use of powerful genjutsu, would be available to me. Think of the power I would hold! And my ability to suck chakra through Preta Path, the ability to push everything and pull anything by the use of Deva Path, the ability to summon all kinds of deadly combat efficient animals because of the Animal Path, summoning the Outer Path through the Naraka Path, enabling perfect interrogation, able to split body and soul because of the Human Path, enabling instant kills, and lastly Asura Path, enabling something I have totally forgotten. Superhuman strength and speed. That would mean that this will be fun.

And so the true battle began!

I smirked widely. If that were all possible, then the possibilities would be absolutely and literally endless! Or so I think, at least. Oh the possibilities of the Rinnegan. But first, I would have to remove the nuisances that are the Akatsuki.

I did the Ram hand seals, an indication that I was about to do something. To that the two Akatsuki members I was facing tensed up considerably. "Release!" I cried out as I channelled chakra throughout my entire chakra network system and around my entire body. Suddenly I felt a lightness spreading across my limbs, as if a great weight had been released from them. I hadn't forgotten about the weights I had applied a little over a year ago. I had in fact steadily increased the weights so that the speed of which I would fight in was about Rock Lee's with weights on. Sure enough, it lightened me to the point where it felt like I was floating in the air. I didn't know I put _that_ much into the weights, I just thought it would eventually be good enough for me to run around and be difficult to catch.

And I was. Difficult to catch, that is. While I channelled Lightning chakra through the synapses in my brain it increased both the speed of my thought processes and my reaction speeds. Not sufficient enough to keep me unharmed, but enough to keep them, the Akatsuki, from killing me.

And so we began to fight. I rushed on ahead, something the Zombie Combo did not exactly expect but were prepared for, and Hidan swung his scythe to meet me. I used a Kawarimi with a nearby log. While Hidan was speculating the cruelty of cutting a log into pieces, and having a mad grin that turned into disappointment when he actually saw that it was the _log_ that he cut up instead of me, I ran ahead towards Kakuzu to engage him in close quarters combat. Hidan turned around and ran after me, but I was far too fast for him all of a sudden.

I threaded through some hand seals, Dragon, Tiger, Hare, "Water Release, Violent Water Wave!". I put my hand around my mouth, creating a wave of chakra flowing out of my throat and towards my target, Kakuzu. I converted the chakra flowing out of my throat into Water natured chakra, so instead of just a tendril of chakra going out of my mouth a violent water wave, hence the name of the jutsu, was spat out at Kakuzu.

Kakuzu flew through hand seals that should be faster than I should have been able to see, but somehow I could see them all of a sudden. The hand seals were Tiger, Hare, Boar then Dog. I saw a wall of earth and mud rise up to block the water, but this strange thing happened. Black flames surrounded the wall and the water, burning it as my left eye began to itch and ache horribly, maybe even let off a trickle of blood out of its corners as much as it ached. Probably Amaterasu. Alright! That confirmed it! I can do Amaterasu. How awesome is that?

"Amaterasu?" I heard Kakuzu exclaim loudly. I heard some rustling in the forest, like someone was watching but suddenly realized the mistake and stopped moving, but I paid it no heed at all.

I turned around a full one eighty to face Hidan and made eye-contact with him.

Big mistake. On Hidan's part, at least.

My right eye all of a sudden bleed a little from its corner as I grinned at the sheer torture that Hidan would go through. The pain that he would _unwillingly_ experience. Something he is definitely not used to.

* * *

><p>All of a sudden we found ourselves in a world of few colours. Only red, black and white were visible in this world of illusions.<p>

Hidan was without his triple bladed scythe, or any of his weapons in fact. He was looking around frantically, searching for anyone to kill or maim with his bare hands. He was promised a kill and he would be damned if he didn't get to taste any blood or kill someone. All of a sudden his forearms' bones snapped at a perfect ninety degree angle inwards, sending a surge of pain signals to his brain, making him cringe of it. He was not all that phased by it since he had had much, much worse than just the forearms broken.

But no, this was not the end of it. Suddenly, just as quickly as the bones had snapped had both of his arms gone _the wrong way_ and thick spikes jutted out of his collarbone, disabling Hidan's ability to look down, and in fact stretched his neck to the point of where it hurt like hell, almost, but not really, ripping anything out of its place. It was similar to the Heretic's Fork in appearance and function. How delightfully similar too. I almost burst out laughing from the look on Hidan's usually gleeful face.

But still Hidan persevered, not giving me the satisfaction of him screaming. "My my, what inner strength you have. Now, I know you're immortal in probably every sense of the word. However, that doesn't mean that I can't enjoy torturing you over, and over, and over, again. For seventy two hours..." I chuckled ominously. Of course I knew that the power I was getting was driving me insane, but come on, it's not fun if you're not a little bit crazy. And the crazier the funnier. So why not go all the way?

And so continued the torture of Hidan. I made his legs go the wrong way, I drowned him, I crushed his bones, grinded his muscles to dust with a saw, ran him over by a steamroller, burned him with several non smoked cigarette butts, tied his hands together and smashed his wrists, put him in an Iron Maiden I made in less than a second.

But none of it made him scream. He held steadfast, not giving in an inch.

It irritated me. And what irritates me I eliminate and grind into the ground.

So I pulled all the stops out, pulled out every imaginable means of torture, and when I got to the Spanish Donkey and pulling his legs down and away from each other, ripping apart his groin, he finally gave in to the pain.

He screamed and screamed. I swear I saw a sliver of his tears going through his eyelids. Now there's an idea that that brought to me. I could tear off his eyelids!

And I did. After I had used the Knee Splitter and the Judas Cradle. Along with the Thumb Crusher and Cat's Paw. I laughed and laughed as I did all these things. It was so fun, seeing the madman scream so much.

You can't even imagine the pain I put him through, making him scream his lungs out. And that was not hypothetically meant, either.

And so the agony inflicted upon Hidan continued for seventy two hours. And I just could not stop laughing at him. Wasn't he supposed to be some kind of masochist, loving pain? Was he not supposed to love pain like it was his closest friend? Oh, who cared, anyway? I'll just let him suffer!

* * *

><p>Hidan screamed so loudly the intense battle between Jiraya and Konan and Pain was stopped momentarily to view the damage done. It was not visible damage, but the affliction it had done was definitely seen. Hidan knelt down at my feet, squirming in phantom pains. He should not be able to move for the next few days now.<p>

I turned my head slowly to face the wide eyed Kakuzu. "What?" I mocked Kakuzu as I gestured towards the still twitching Hidan laying on the ground, "I just tortured him for seventy two hours. Don't you think it's time to get away from here? I'm willing to step aside for you to-"

I was cut off when I felt a stinging pain explode in the right part of my back and right arm, as if a blade had been cutting the flesh into pieces.

The pain was too much! I couldn't understand where the pain had come from! I looked behind me to see a smugly smirking Hidan.

Fuck. I forgot that he revelled in pain. So perhaps he was merely faking it-

"That fucking hurt, you bastard!" he screamed at me furiously, as if I had caused him pain for three days. Something I actually had done, but never mind.

I clutched my wounds, which were quite shallow, to stem the bleeding while Hidan began to lick up the blood from his unsteady scythe. Guess the aftershocks of the Tsukiyomi still had an effect. And why shouldn't it? It was supposed to cripple a person's grey matter, their brain for those not in the know, making them ineffective at doing anything like they usually did. Like taking a bath. It would be such an ordeal that they almost would have to have someone to help them take their clothes off and whatnot. So why was Hidan still moving and swinging his large triple bladed scythe around like a maniac, something he usually does anyway? He shouldn't be able to, even _if_ he revelled in pain, was a masochist and all. He should not be able to. Perhaps it is his belief in Jashin and the immortality he has been given by the cult of Jashin. There are so many theories, and so much pain from the wound I have been given by the crazy silver haired maniac.

"It was supposed to hurt, asshole!" I managed to get out despite the pain I had received from Hidan's scythe. Let it be known that I was a pussy when it came to pain. I just could not handle it, and when I did get pain I would almost instantly give up.

But not this time. Fu was on the line and I'd be damned if she were to die.

I sensed, you could say it was instinct, some kind of danger approaching me rapidly from Kakuzu's general direction and jumped above another hand attached to black threads, sent courtesy of Kakuzu, without a doubt. The hand crashed heavily into the ground, spreading hairline cracks all around it. I stepped on it, enhancing my entire body with Earth chakra to make myself heavier, disabling Kakuzu's last hand.

I looked down and focused solely on the threaded brown hand. I wanted it gone. There was nothing else I wanted more gone than that hand. I imagined my chakra flowing through my eyes and imagined the hand disappear in a vortex of Space-Time, like it was being downed in a sink, and the water was matter. And then sure enough a vortex of _something_ came out of the blue and attracted the air around the hand I wanted gone, and then in a complex matter of Space-Time ninjutsu the hand was gone from its wielder, never to see the light of day ever again.

I looked up and saw Hidan, the black one with white skull markings and all that pizazz, stab himself with that retractable pike of his, the one that suspiciously looked like a sharp baton, actually. As the blood flowed from the wound he began to trace the beginnings of a circle.

But I recognized immediately what he wanted to do. He wanted to use his immortality to his advantage and do his little 'I stab myself and both of us get the damage' kind of thing.

I immediately enhanced my muscles with Wind natured chakra, making them much quicker and faster to move and all that, and went through some hand seals. Tiger, Ox, Dog, Rabbit, Snake, "Wind Release, Great Breakthrough!" I imagined my enormous reserves of chakra split a little and convert into Wind chakra in my throat and start compressing rapidly. Yes, compressing. As it compressed it shot out from my throat and exploded into a burst of air, becoming a great breakthrough of Wind chakra, storming towards Hidan with extreme force.

It went without saying that Hidan flew straight out of the clearing.


	26. The Inner Voice

Kakuzu slammed himself into my right side as I had sent Hidan careening towards the forest line. Thankfully I had activated the Mangekyo Sharingan ability, Susanoo to avoid being sent off to the forest line.

The silvery hand of my Susanoo grabbed hold of Kakuzu. Time for Kakuzu to die, I think! I wanted to squash him so bad. I wanted nothing more than for his death to come to being! I wanted to be the one to kill Kakuzu of Takigakure no Sato. One of the most difficult to kill chakra monsters out there. And I would be the one to kill him. That line of thinking gave me such a sense of euphoria that I simply did not want to stop. I wanted to trap Kakuzu in a Tsukiyomi illusion and see how long it would take for him to snap. I wanted him dead!

I forced the silvery transparent hands of the Susanoo to squeeze the life out of Kakuzu. So caught up in the rush of almost sexual pleasure I got from wanting to kill Kakuzu I didn't notice three sets of feet running towards me before it was too late.

Though luckily for me, the Susanoo was still activated, defending me from all the attacks from those weird missiles that I was sure was the Asura Path's modified body's ability. I turned my head around as I kept Kakuzu in the grasp of my Susanoo. "Heh?" I snarled at the faintly smiling doll form of the Asura Path. The Asura Path had already torn off the Akatsuki cape, and as I looked around I saw what I assumed was the Human Path and the Preta Path. Those would give me trouble.

Not that I cared much. Those living puppets of Nagato's would just go into the slaughter and finally give me the challenge I had been waiting for.

I grinned maliciously, "Come to play, Nagato?", it was so much fun seeing their emotionless faces and their bodies becoming completely paralysed. For about a second, at least.

The Preta Path took a step forward, "So you know my real name, do you?" he sort of asked. I mean sort of, since it was like a demand more than anything, really.

My malicious grin took a turn for the worse and widened some more, making me look even more insane than I probably already was, "Exactly. And I know for a fact," I pouted in mock pity, "That poor little Yahiko is dead. Aww, how sad." And once again I grinned viciously at the tensed up bodies of Nagato's Six Paths of Pain. Ah, I wished at that moment that I had six bodies I could control at will.

Oh wait!

I can have thousands in the matter of minutes via Shadow Clones! How stupid of me to forget that.

Still holding onto Kakuzu, I willed my Susanoo to throw him towards the Asura Path's metallic tail. The Asura Path jumped up to grab onto the handless Kakuzu, something that was courtesy of me.

My eyes began to ache something fierce. I hypothesized at that moment that it was probably from the use of the Susanoo, something akin to how Sasuke described using his purple version of the Susanoo. I deactivated my silver coloured Susanoo, but if I had a choice I would without a doubt keep it on for eternity, just to see the effect if would have on people. But alas, that would be for another time when I had the time to do it and when I wanted to spare the effort to actually scare people with it.

I charged at the four Akatsuki members, and I was intent on killing them with some fierce fervour and some surprising speed too. I charged up a Water chakra natured Rasengan and prepared to ram it into the gut of Preta Path's body. I knew he would absorb it and when he would I would be ready to knee him in the freaking face. How delightful it is to come up with a plan in less than a second! It gave me such a feeling of ecstasy that I almost tripped along the dirt. I couldn't resist it!

I grinned a wide grin again when the Preta Path predictably put both of its hands forward, and a white suction appeared, almost like an inverse coloured Kamui, in each hand. The white coloured vortexes absorbed the rushed-ahead Water natured Rasengan and as it did so I jumped up four feet up into the air and made my chakra powered knee collide hard with the Preta Path's head, smashing the skull and tearing up whatever brains were inside it.

The Preta Path body was sent flying to the air just as Asura Path fired a few missiles at me and charged at me with its many arms splayed about, three mechanical arms on each of its sides.

The Human Path, predictably enough, settled with hanging back, relying on the Asura Path's fighting capability as it charged ahead of it.

I didn't give two flying fucking shits about it though. I wanted to kill something, and utterly destroying Preta Path's head was satisfying beyond belief! I didn't know anything else more pleasurable! Now I knew how Hidan must feel when he is in pain. It is such a gratifying experience, I know of nothing else better!

_Would you never stop killing?_

Never!

My grin widened as the Human Path charged at me. But it was for naught. I made an Earth Rasengan in my right hand and copied the Human Path's charge forward. I met the Path head on, colliding my Rasengan with-

Air.

The Human Path had jumped up and above me and reached for the back of my head to extract my soul. I didn't see that one coming. But it was alright, I was too powerful to die! I used a sealless shunshin to get away from Human Path, but with the Earthen Rasengan still in my hand. I made it bigger, larger, making it as big as a basketball. I appeared again over the Asura Path and pushed the Earthen Rasengan into the back of Asura Path's back, eliminating the Asura Path completely. But curiously enough, nothing else was destroyed other than the Asura Path. But honestly, I didn't care. All I cared about was how satisfying it was to neutralize the Asura Path.

Suddenly the Asura Path's body, not having held Kakuzu for some reason or other, disappeared in a puff of smoke.

What? It disappeared? I didn't have time to think about the disappearance of the Asura Path and the curious disappearance of Kakuzu, because abruptly a mechanical hand planted itself in the side of my waist, sending me off to who knows where.

I careened off to the sidelines, and heard a frantic yell of someone probably concerned for me. But I didn't care. I wanted to kill that fucking Asura Path! It was grating my nerves.

I looked up just in time to see some missiles flying towards me, with the troublesome Asura Path right behind it.

With no time for any hand seals, no matter how fast I was I couldn't 'outrun' the missiles, I activated my favourite silver companion, Susanoo.

My eyes ached fiercely, but I ignored the feeling as they began to even bleed a little. The recent euphoria of killing someone had flooded any and all senses of mine. I wanted to kill again, I wanted to prove that I was the best of the best. I wanted to kill Akatsuki, for the sake of me!

_Not for Naruto or Fu?_

That thought gave me some pause. Where did that one come from? Where did it come from? Some sort of higher being, maybe? A ridiculous thought, but why did it sound so like my own voice? And sounding as if it was grinning so widely it threatened to split its face in half.

Bah! Never mind. I would prove to Akatsuki that I was the best by butchering any and all of the Six Paths of Pain, along with Hidan and Kakuzu, the infamous Zombie Combo.

With my Susanoo still active, I willed it to change into a ranged form, with armour similar to the one that Sasuke's, with grinning silver teeth and a bow and arrow in each hand.

"Take this!" I roared out to the Asura Path, and the arrow flew so fast that even if the Asura Path wasn't such a large target it would still be hit. After all, the only effective counters to the arrows of Susanoo would be Kamui, like how Kakashi Hatake removed the arrow, as well as Wood Release, as evidenced by Danzo Shimura during his fight with Sasuke Uchiha after the Five Kage Summit.

The Asura Path seemed to almost disintegrate into nothingness at the sheer chakra being put behind the arrow of Susanoo. The arrow penetrated its tough skin, its mechanical workings all but torn apart as the large and long silver arrow pierced the back of the machinelike beast. The Asura Path was still, completely so, on its two feet. And like a great tower it fell. Its smiling visage still apparent to me. It pissed me off! Why couldn't it be writhing in pain? I wanted it to! I wanted it to be completely and utterly underneath me! I wanted it dead!

There was a black vortex swallowing up the mechanized body of the Asura Path. Kamui, I identified. I felt a surge of pain going through my left eye. But it didn't matter. I had killed the Asura Path. It was a joyous experience! Now I really know how Hidan felt when he experienced pain! How delightfully pleasant a feeling!

I wanted more of it.

I looked around but my eyes did not find the last remaining path that was supposed to face me. Where was he? I wanted to know where he was so badly. I wanted to kill the Human Path so extremely much! I could resurrect them! I could resurrect the Preta Path! The Preta Path was a very tough opponent when its controller, Nagato, expected to have a particularly tough fight.

I turned around since I heard someone walking towards me. It was actually two sets of steps, and I heard some arguing going on. It sounded vaguely familiar, actually. It almost sounded like someone I knew. I glanced behind me. No wretched Human Path, not even as I spread my horribly sensing radar out. Nothing. Except the two vaguely familiar patterns going towards me and Fu, lying on the ground absolutely helpless. Alright. No one close by that could be a serious threat to my health. I deactivated my Susanoo. It was after all making my eyes bleed and ache like hell. It was frustrating. And I swear my eyesight had gotten slightly worse.

"And I'm telling you, there is no reason for Mizukage-sama to have sent us here! It's a waste of precious manpower!" I heard an angry voice yell into the ear of someone else. Strange, it was really familiar to me now. It was at the tip of my tongue, yet I couldn't for the life of me get it down.

"And I'm telling you," I heard a melancholic voice say, but it sounded high pitched, like it only recently began getting saddened. Now it was frustrating me beyond measure. I wanted to know these figures that were tree jumping towards me so much it was almost painful. It was so familiar, so on the tip of my tongue that I could not ignore it. "That if it's Mizukage-sama's orders we follow them. And besides, I don't give a shit what you think anyway."

Wow, that was startling me for some reason. It felt so familiar now, it felt like the person who had said that was _not_ supposed to curse.

Silence followed the reply of the sad person.

And I saw two flashes of different colours, one red and another dark green, before I recognized them again.

"Kazue? Akahime?" I whispered, my eyes wide with surprise. What in the world were they doing in Wave Country? Patrolling? Spying?

But essentially it mattered not. Slowly I got a grin on my face. Maybe if I killed them I could gain some sort of eternal power. The Mangekyo Sharingan required the closest person to you to be killed by you. Maybe Akahime or Kazue were the closest one to me.

I heard and sensed the two stop immediately in their tracks. I ran towards them with fervour, it was tempting to just spam the arrows of Susanoo in order to kill them, but that would be too easy.

I turned around a tree and lo and behold there was Kazue and Akahime standing on a tree branch, Akahime holding a hand close to a pouch on her hip, probably a kunai or shuriken pouch.

"Shi-Shinji?" Akahime and Kazue both stammered out at the same time. It was surprising, really. They weren't the type to stutter. But alas, I didn't care at all. I wanted to kill them. But I had to kill them at the same time. It wouldn't do for them to run away now, would it? They were always faster than me, even when I put as much chakra behind a shunshin as I possibly could. They were more efficient than me in it. I wanted to kill them for it. And I would.

So I plastered a fake smile on my face. Though I felt no regret, no remorse for playing with their feelings, their emotions. In fact, I took some sort of sick pleasure in it, something I would consider almost sensual, if not.

Akahime, expectedly, heated up, got all red in her pretty face that would probably look even better bathed in red hot blood. "Where have you been?" she screamed loudly. She marched up to me, still red in anger and hit me hard across the face, slapping me. It left a large red imprint on my cheek. Now all this red got me so thirsty for blood I wanted to kill her. But that would make Kazue run for it or something and that would create a war between Konoha and Kiri, something I wasn't too willing to have. Definitely not if they would both chase me. Though it would give me more people to slaughter it wouldn't be good or healthy for me to constantly be on alert for enemy ninja.

_Is it even healthy for your sanity, killing people?_ Once again the grinning voice perked up.

Why? Why would it perk up? It should not be acting up! I should not be going crazy, getting voices in my head and all! But why was there a voice in my head?

_My voice is not in your head, I'm just talking directly to you..._

Fuck it, I didn't care what the voice wanted. I looked up after shaking my head a little to hopefully shake the voice away.

I glared at Akahime, something that Kazue nor Akahime expected. "What was that for, Akahime?" I sighed deeply at her suddenly guilt ridden, still red, face. "You know what, never mind. I know how you're like," I looked up with the fake grin in place. "So, how have you been, Akahime? Kazue? I hope life has been treating you fairly," I said loudly and balled my fists and put them on my waist to display some sort of fake boisterousness.

All of a sudden Kazue used a shunshin to ram his fist into my face, sending me off through four trees. And it freaking hurt! How dare he do such a thing? I will kill him!

"What in the world is wrong with you, Kazue-kun?" I heard Akahime yell into his ear. But I didn't care. I was going to kill Kazue for hitting me. Luckily I had enhanced my bone structure with large amounts of chakra during my fight with the three of the Six Paths of Pain, and I had not been stopping it. But that still didn't mean that it didn't hurt like hell! I was really going to kill Kazue for hitting me! That inferior green loving creature will pay! How dare he? I am the Sage of the Six Paths reborn!

_Are you really?_

Sh-Shut up! I am! I will kill him for hitting me!

_Was the Sage not forgiving? Was the Sage not merciful? Answer me, mis-ter Shin-ji Ta-ku-ma_, the voice said again. It sounded like it was grinning madly, like before, and I swear it was even cackling at my predicament. I hate the voice. It's all its fault! I will kill it when I have the chance!

_If so, then you'll have to kill yourself. Are you willing to kill yourself to merely not hear me again?_

Fuck you! May you die in a burning hell! I'll kill them all! I'll kill them! I swear it! I'll kill everyone who gets in my way!

_Even Naruto and Fu?_

Ye- What?

_Would you kill Naruto and Fu just to satisfy your craving for blood?_

No... no. I wouldn't. And why am I craving blood? What has made me hungry for the red stuff? I find it disgusting. Why would I be hungry for it? Perhaps I was getting mad, drunk even, with power. Perhaps it's the eyes affecting me. Maybe... no, it has to be the eyes! I need to remove them! I need to get rid of them! They're corrupting me! I don't want to die a corrupted being, a tainted creature! I need to live, for Anko-chan! I don't want Anko-chan to kill me again in heaven! I don't want to meet I need to rid my eye sockets of their Rinnegan eyes!

I once again shook my head to clear it, hoping in vain that the voice would not act up again. I stood up groggily. Why did Kazue hurt me? "Why did you do that, Kazue?" I whispered, but the argument between Akahime and Kazue had stopped, probably because they had been channelling chakra through their ears to listen to me, Akahime in concern and Kazue in suspicion.

They both turned their heads to face me, one in sorrow, anguish and regret, the other with suspicion and distrust along with betrayal.

Kazue once again used shunshin to get right in front of me. He grasped the collar of my kimono and hoisted me up. "Who are you?" Kazue hissed at me maliciously, as if I were the snake, Orochimaru. Damn him to the _tenth_ circle of Hell!

Why did Kazue ask that? I was Shinji Takuma of Konoha, who else would I be? "It's me, Kazue, it's me. I'm Shinji. Don't you remember me?" I asked in vain hope that Kazue would let go of me so I could explain myself further. Besides, why did Kazue act so hostile? What had I done?

Kazue narrowed his eyes in anger, "Don't try and impersonate him! You're not Shinji Takuma! Who are you? And how do you look like him so much?" Kazue roared out. That was really unlike the cheerful and animated Kazue I knew from before. What had happened to make him so violent? Had he finally had enough of Akahime's anger issues? And speaking of Akahime, why was she in the background, looking scared of me, of Kazue? What had happened to make them so unlike themselves?

"Shinji has a real smile!" Kazue shouted, tears leaking out of his eyes. It was surprising to me. Why was Kazue crying like a loon out of nowhere? Whatever happened must have been really hurting them for a while now. "He doesn't smile like he wants to kill someone just for the sake of it!" he lamented, and considering the circumstances it was understandable. I was bloodthirsty not a minute ago, and wanted nothing else but the blood of anyone splattered on the ground. What a horrendous thought that was.

"I'm sorry, Kazue," I whispered, loud enough that Akahime, who was close enough to hear it, heard it.

"That's another thing!" the one I apologized to bellowed, "You would call me Kazue-kun! I've been worried sick over you, Akahime-chan won't tell me what has happened to you, Mizukage-sama refuses to tell me anything that has happened to you, because 'It's an S-Class secret'!" So that's what got him so riled up. I thought it was something more serious. But I would have to look at it from his perspective. I was a good friend of Kazue's- no, Kazue-_kun_'s.

"I'm so sorry, Kazue-kun. I went to Konoha-"

In a flash my heart felt like it was pierced by a sharp baton. And I screamed out to the heavens because of the pain.

What had happened? Why was my heart stopping? Why was I on the ground, Fu and Naruto crying like a pair of babies above me, both holding onto the collar of my kimono fiercely? Why was I giving them a scroll? The scroll I had written my goodbye message on? The one I had edited a lot since then? Why was Jiraiya standing above me, with a sad look on his face? Why was Kazue-kun and Akahime-chan tearing up?

And why was Anko screaming herself hoarse, standing above me, crying?

_Well done, mis-ter Shin-ji Ta-ku-ma. Now it's time for you to get over here for a moment._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>No one has guessed the Higher Entity just yet. Care to take a guess, honorable reader?  
>Also, I'm sorry for the abrupt ending, but it does in fact have a purpose, and not because I felt rushed to get it out. Also, if anyone has any complaints, please complain to me through reviews. I'll be sure to message you straight back!<p> 


	27. Expanse Of Whiteness

I stood before a mass of complete whiteness. There was nothing else, no ceiling to cover any rain, no floor to stand on, no walls to hang decorations on, no sky to look up to in the night, no ground to gaze upon, there was absolutely nothing.

And it was scary as hell.

Where was I? How did I get here? Hadn't I died? How had I died to begin with anyway? I remembered that I felt a sting through my entire chest, more specifically my heart. Who has the ability to hurt me without actually causing physical damage? Of course, the answer came to me almost immediately. Hidan had that ability. He had already gotten my blood, and he had gotten the time to draw that ritualistic Jashinist circle of his. It's probably the only jutsu he knows anyway. But nevermind. If I had died, then the area I was in must have been the afterlife. But it sure as hell was boring.

In my confusion I turned around and around, twisting and turning to see if there was anyone, anything to indicate that I was somewhere. There was nothing. I looked down, and despite the whiteness I still seemed to cast shadows. And somehow I felt as if I was standing on ground. It was a weird experience, really. Not seeing the ground yet still standing on it, seeing the shadows of which I was projecting. My shadow was cast as if the light came directly from above me, but when I looked up it was the exact same whiteness – not light – that came from every other angle.

It was extremely discomforting.

"Well hello there, mis-ter Shin-ji Ta-ku-ma!" I heard a widely smiling voice say. The voice was from behind me, and yet it came from in front of me, above me and below me. No, more accurately it could be described as an omnipresent voice. But its significant tone was coming from behind.

So I turned around.

To see a massive, and when I talk about massive, I mean absolutely gigantic, gate. There were intricate letters of the Japanese language, some not making any sense in any context whatsoever, others seeming as if that if it gave one more symbol it would unlock the gate to show what was behind it.

But as I was staring at the sudden gargantuan gate I heard the still grinning and mirthful voice say, "Yes, magnificent, isn't it, the Gate?"

I looked down to see some sort of white outline. It was rather odd, actually. A white outline, something that should be indefinable to the naked eye unless you-

Oh right.

I had the Rinnegan. Same rules don't apply.

Anyway, I saw some sort of white entity that looked suspiciously like me, both in height and body structure. Yet there was this surprisingly beaming smile that threatened to split its head in two, like it knew the greatest joke in the entire world and yet didn't, couldn't, tell it.

"Am I really that interesting, Shinji Takuma of 'Konoha'?" the entity mocked, not bothering to wipe its smirk off its white face.

I was trying as hard as I could to try and recall this. It was all really familiar, now that I thought about it.

Whiteness, a massive gate, some form of white entity that smiles like it just ate shit or something else equally disgusting.

But first, "Who are you?" I asked politely. It was best not to piss off the only living, or not for all I knew, entity around probably for miles and miles around.

"I go by many a name," its grin widened, if that were possible, "I am called God, the World, the Universe, one, all, and even," its voice dropped a few octaves, deepening heavily yet still reminding me of my own voice, "_you_," the entity ended its short sentence with a slight chuckle.

Wait just a moment. Now the things were coming back to me... whiteness, a colossal gate, a 'God' with so many different names that I don't even care to count...

Was I-

My face must have contorted into shock or surprise, or something, because 'God' said, "Seems like you figured it out. Yes," 'God' spread its arms wide, as if to showcase the emptiness of the endless whiteness, "You're in the _Fullmetal Alchemist_ universe now!", it laughed aloud when, startled, I took a step back.

"So," I hesitated, "So that voice in my head..."

"That was me!" 'Universe' said, pointing jokingly at itself.

What? It was it all along? Why hadn't I guessed from the way it was speaking? I should have been able to know! But alas, all things don't come delivered to you, so therefore, you beat the crap out of the messenger for him or her being late. I mean seriously, messengers are not supposed to be late! Honestly... but in this case, I guess the 'messenger' is my grey matter, my brain. Sort of.

God, for some reason I hope Fu and Naruto are alright.

Wait, speaking of them, didn't I see Anko there? And curiously enough, I thought she might have gotten a bit round around the tummy. She must have taken on a few pounds. Not good. Hope she realizes that soon enough that she would do some workout. It's not healthy having unnecessary cholesterol and fat on your thighs. Definitely not.

"Yes," the 'World' said, as if telling me was revealing a big secret, not wiping off the smirk either, "those three are absolutely fine. Fu, Anko and Naruto are fine. But grieving," it closed its lips, yet was still smiling widely.

It was heart-warming, in all honesty I thought that Truth was uncaring for that matter. I thought that Truth was an unforgiving thing. One that did not see through the fingers, as they say.

But then Truth split its lips in a widened grin. "Of course, I don't really care about such trivial human matters that the Shinigami handles," Truth waved its hand around in a dismissing manner.

Of course... Truth doesn't care about anything other than its namesake.

I sighed deeply. Time to forget about that and focus on the now. Wherever that was, "So, what do you need me for?" I asked bluntly. Now that I knew that it was Truth that was here, not some kind of vengeful god that hated disobedience, I was sure that I could be as impolite as I wanted to. Not that I would be a complete ass, though. Because I'm not. I hope.

Then something happened that surprised me greatly. But in hindsight I should have expected it. The humongous door opened with a slam, opening to a mass of darkness and a single large and completely white eye. A large black hand shot out of the gate and grabbed hold of me. Now that was strange. Wasn't it supposed to be several small black hands? But at that moment I didn't care much. I wanted to see the strength of the hand, so I stuck to whatever floor or ground I was on with an enormous amount of chakra to see if that would affect anything. And sure enough, I was stuck to the ground.

"I need you to take my place for me for a little while. In return, I'll do you a favour. Equivalent exchange," Truth said to me, while still maintaining his position in front of the Gate of Truth.

"So," I managed to struggle out, "That's what you want me for." And then I stopped channelling chakra to my feet. And I was pulled out of the white realm.

* * *

><p>I cannot truly describe where I was. It was almost the like the white realm of existence, actually. Just that it was red. And there was people around, either screaming in terror or giggling like mad. I didn't know what to do except maybe escape. But all these screams of fright, fear was flooding every sensory receiver of mine. It was terrifying. I wanted out of there. And by god, or Truth for that matter, I would.<p>

So, time to think rationally. Truth said that it needed to switch places with me. It said that it would be temporary, and Truth never lies. So what was with that large black hand grabbing hold of me? Wouldn't it, shouldn't it, be hundreds if not thousands of smaller black hands that would grab hold of me? Wouldn't it be one large eye and several smaller ones? Oh right! Truth said that I had to switch places with him, so that means that I am supposed to be taken by Father, the guy who at first looked like Van Hohenheim, Edward Elric's father, and then just like Edward Elric, just without his automail, or Van Hohenheim when he was younger. So that meant that the red thing that I was in would the the Philosopher's Stone of Father's.

That wasn't good.

But then again, that would mean that I should be getting out of here soon. Helping Edward Elric on defeating Father would be most detrimental to Father and beneficial to me and Edward Elric and company. So therefore, I should not target the souls in the Philosopher's Stone but rather its tight compacted walls.

So I performed a Ram seal shunshin to get as far away from the middle of the stone as possible. And sure enough, I was slammed into the wall nose first. And fucking hell did it hurt. I was pretty sure that I had my nose broken, since it was bleeding now. But I didn't care much. I sure as hell hoped at that moment that my bleeding wouldn't affect the Philosopher's Stone's compaction in a negative manner. At least not in an adverse effect in my side, I hoped. But alas, I had gotten to the red wall of the downright largest of all Philosopher's Stones that had ever been in existence.

Time to fuck it up.

I prepared myself a Fire Rasengan, see if its poisonous nature would be able to damage the wall of tight compacted _something_. The screams of the recently deceased but without a doubt to be resurrected souls would haunt me to the end of my days, but I would save them, even if it would cost me my life!

I slammed the Fire Rasengan into the wall and held it up against the wall for only about a second before someone pulled me back by the hem of my kimono. What? Why would someone not want me to escape, or help someone make an escape? It was curious, actually. I looked back and was shocked to see that every single soul within visual distance was looking at me scared, like I was the source of their despair and had given them a temporary peace just to scare them some.

"What are you doing?" I shouted out to the wailing souls of the recently departed.

The souls did not answer at all. If anything their weeping and wailing increased by a margin.

I sighed. Of course, this was a Philosopher's Stone, the souls of the late could not respond to anything I said or did, unless father wanted them to. And he didn't. He wanted the powers of 'God'.

Suddenly a lot of souls were gone by a discharge of red electricity. It was almost as if they were used for a purpose. I hoped that it wouldn't be diminishing the populace of Amestris.

I looked behind me to the wall of reddish something and saw a slight opening that was closed in a discharge of red electricity. That gave me an idea. Maybe that the use of the souls by Father made the red wall open in order for him to create maybe a shield to stop bullets. It was a viable theory, but alas, it wouldn't do for the holes to just close up again. So I had to do something about that. Maybe a Lightning Rasengan could fix that problem for me.

I walked, somehow the souls made deliberate stepping stones for me to walk on, not that I minded, to the wall. As I approached it I was once again dragged back by a random nondescript soul. But I didn't turn away from the wall.

In another discharge of red electricity some of the souls flowed out of a hole. Immediately I started to get an idea.

In Fullmetal Alchemist canon every person in Amestris got back up from being almost dead. But how? I didn't completely remember, but it was not necessary for me to remember. After all, everything would eventually be alright again due to the efforts of Edward Elric and his brother, Alphonse Elric. Of course that is not neglecting Greed, Ling Yao and his bodyguards, Lan Fan and Fu – not to be confused with the Jinchuuriki girl from the Naruto universe that I had been taking care of for a while – May Chang, Scar, Alex Louis Armstrong and his sister, Olivier Mira Armstrong, and Van Hohenheim, along with Izumi Curtis and her husband, Sig Curtis.

But the names of the heroes would do no good for me if I was stuck in the Philosopher's Stone. So I had to get out. But if my hypothesis was correct then whenever I got close to the walls of the Philosopher's stone then some random soul gets picked to pull me back.

That won't do.

So when I approached the wall and felt a hand latch onto the hem of my white kimono I elbowed them in the face without even looking behind me and created a massive amount of shadow clones to hold them all back, attacking them with my fists and feet.

Now that that was being taken care of I turned to face the closest wall of redness and prepared a Lightning Rasengan in my left hand. With the shadow clones occupied with keeping the souls back from me, and the multiple discharges of red electricity that the souls disappeared in, I was quickly able to penetrate the red wall properly.

Finally! My arm was outside the wall, and before the red wall could properly clamp down on me I was putting both of my feet on the sides of the hole, enhancing my legs with chakra to make sure that they both stayed there and widened the hole in the redness. With my arm outside I dispelled all of my shadow clones, and since all of a sudden there weren't many souls left they were all tasked with keeping the holder of the Philosopher's stone safe. Too bad Father was about to die anyway, despite the his own efforts.

I squeezed myself out of the hole when it was wide enough for me to go through. At first I managed to get my right arm out, since it was the one with the Lightning Rasengan in it, and then I got my other arm out, then my head, and gradually I felt an odd sensation running throughout my body. It felt like I was growing larger and larger by the second, but as I looked down into the hole, I noticed that my legs were still the same size as before, creating a rather comical image. But alas, when the sensation spread itself to my legs I grew nearly a hundred times the initial size I was while in the Philosopher's Stone, meaning that Father's Body must have housed a large Philosopher's Stone, but the whole body couldn't have been a Philosopher's Stone. That would mean an unnatural amount of human lives, something that would without a doubt be widespread knowledge by then.

But alas that was not to be. And honestly, I didn't care much. I wanted to get out of there and I'd be damned if someone as pathetic as Father would be holding me _inside_ him.

So finally I landed heavily with a grunt of a small amount of pain on the ground. Finally! I was out of that damned screaming hall of whatnot. The ground, I noticed, was out of gravel and broken stone, most likely from the battle between Father and humankind.

"Why won't you be mine, god?" I heard a tired voice say from behind me. Of course it was Father. Father must have been very strained by now, what with the battle and the lack of souls.

But I didn't care much for that at that moment. No, a much more serious, much more pressing matter had to be attended immediately!

"My kimono is dirty," I whined to myself. Dammit. The automatic cleaning seals I had put on them must have been ripped to shreds during my stay in the Philosopher's Stone or during my transition from the Naruto universe to the Fullmetal Alchemist universe.

I sighed. Oh well. Stuff like that usually happens all the time. Now I had to wash my kimono until I could acquire some ink, paper and a classic looking brush with new and white bristles. How I loved my standard sealing equipment...

Anyway, time to look up and survey my surroundings. I looked up, and sure enough I saw what I expected to see. There was rubble strewn about everywhere, and to my right was a large hole easily the size of three cars side by side. Around the destroyed-to-dust area was rows of men garbed in white clothes taking cover behind either broken columns or large broken vases housing green plants. All of them were aiming what I'd consider ancient shooting weapons from the nineteenth century at either me or Father, whom I had my back to. I was confident in myself, knowing that if Father wanted me to die he would do so, but he didn't need to know that I was completely and one hundred percent human. If he did, I'd be fucked two ways to Sunday. And I didn't want that.

I brushed off the dirt casually, not caring for the serious atmosphere hanging heavily on the people surrounding me and Father. I once again looked around me, wanting to spot two people I really wanted to see ever since I knew I was in the Fullmetal Alchemist universe. Edward Elric and his brother, Alphonse Elric. Could it be that Alphonse really was a hollow shell of armour? That would be extremely efficient in combat, but not in social occasions. Then it would be extremely awkward.

And sure enough I spotted Edward Elric first. His left arm had a small hole through it, but I knew he'd brush it off as not worthy to worry about in consideration with the loss of Alphonse. He wore a black shirt, completely exposing his actually quite well muscled arms, something I'd think would be quite amazing considering his diminutive stature. He sure enough had an automail leg, but he had both his arms intact, meaning that Alphonse must have sacrificed himself for restoring it. Not good, but I knew that Alphonse would come back after Edward would sacrifice his Gate of Truth for his brother's life. It would be quite a dramatic show of courage on Edward's behalf to see him come to that conclusion so easily. It wouldn't be something I would have done, that was for sure, but when it comes down to it, I have nothing but respect for those who would willingly sacrifice their unique powers for the greater good, in this case a person's life. The Elric Brothers are truly inspirational, brothers to admire. And for ladies to adore, or so I have heard from various female fans of the anime.

I smirked, "Hello there," I said to the shocked Elric brother. I refrained from calling him squirt because I wanted to seem as civil yet enigmatic as possible, just for the kicks I would get out of it.

Edward Elric looked confused to tell you the truth. And he probably was. He was probably expecting Truth to emerge from the mouth of Father's. Not some human lookalike. But then again, there are lots of things happening that you don't expect, isn't there? "Who are you?" Edward asked me heatedly, being caught in the moment, adrenalin coursing through his body. "Are you God?" he added, almost as if it were an afterthought.

I laughed. God? That was a first. I'd never been called god in my entire life. And here was Edward Elric, _Edward freaking Elric_, calling _me_ _God_! Hilarious. I say!

"No, I'm not 'God'," I said after comically wiping a tear of laughter away from my eye with a finger. "God does not exist," I said with an uncaring and quite bored smile on my face, belying the excitement I felt over meeting someone as hotheaded as Edward Elric. It would be quite fun to mock him of his stature and him not liking milk. "There exists only Truth. If you know what I mean," I winked at Edward, not suggestively, mind you. That would be absolutely disturbing.

Edward turned serious, frowning deeply all of a sudden, then asked again, "Who are you then? Answer me!" he shouted, before decking Father a one-two punch in the face, effectively knocking him back a little.

I put my hands up in a placating manner and leaned slightly forward, "Now now, no need to get aggressive, now, is there?" I said comically. I wanted to, as stated previously, seem enigmatic, at best. Unpredictable, if you will. I put my hands on my hips in a display of show-off-iness, or whatever, "I am the great messenger of Truth! Or as you all might know him as," I said, loud enough for the rest of the crew hanging around the place hear me. "God, World, Universe, One, All, and most importantly," I lowered my voice considerably, making everyone lean in to hear what I would say, "You..." I said ominously. I put everyone in a fifty metre radius under a sealless genjutsu that would make everyone see lightning hit the spot behind me, crackling with electricity and thunder echoing loudly on the fortress walls we were inside of.

I dispelled the genjutsu quickly after that and visible perked up. Everyone was shocked that lightning struck, but alas, it was of no manner of consequence at all. Everything would become better with my interference. Right?

Right?

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Anyone who guessed correctly about the voice just guessed correctly and just received an e-cookie. It was Truth from Fullmetal Alchemist! I love the entity like how one would love a teddy bear! I know, I know, crap analogy, but hey, awesome!


	28. Summoning, Impure World Resurrection

I looked behind me, and sure enough I saw May Chang crying over an empty set of armour that looked suspiciously familiar. Oh right, it was Alphonse Elric's armour. Oh well, he'd return. Eventually.

Anyway, time to deal with Father with my awesome jutsu. Let humanity wonder how I'll be able to cast fire, lightning, wind, earth and water at a whim. Edward would be pounding his head in wonder about it, for there would be no so-called 'Equivalent Exchange' about it. Well, at least no _alchemy_ or alkahestry. Nope. None.

Time to get serious, too! I need to deal with the much greater problem that is the Homunculus of Homunculus, Father. I turned to face Father, and yes, his hair was a very pale blonde, like that of an old man's. The veins around his eyes were bulging, threatening to burst if only a little sharp pressure would be applied to some random vein. His eyes themselves were completely white, almost unseeing. He had an arm stretched out highly reminiscent of a zombie.

"Why won't you be mine, god?" he croaked. It almost sounded as if was not used for decades on end.

I grinned maliciously at Father and put my arms in the sleeves of my kimono. "Because you don't believe in him," I finished, a slight chuckle escaping my lips. I just couldn't hold it in, it took all I had to not burst out laughing at the comical situation. I mean, it almost seemed like yesterday that I was at home, doing homework, then going to the Blue Lagoon, just to almost drown and end up in some sort of portal that transported me to the Water Country in the world of Naruto. Then a year and a half dedicated to training _alone_, my trainer being Mei Terumi, Ao, Akahime and Kazue. Though that year and a half was so short it was like it was a mere hour. And then we faced off Yagura, the former Mizukage. And then I went from the Water Country to Fire Country, to Konoha, just to eventually train up Naruto. I met Anko-chan, offered to take away her Cursed Seal, an offer she accepted. And all of a sudden the invasion of Suna and Oto during the Chuunin Exams happened, and I killed a lot of people. It was not something I directly enjoyed, but I felt absolutely no remorse of the lost lives of the Oto ninja and the Suna shinobi. And then Anko-chan told me that she was dying. That really dropped the bomb on me. It was an obvious work of Orochimaru that she were to die. So I would kill him, burn him until not even ashes were left! And then the training trip with Jiraiya. It was all fun and games torturing- I mean training Naruto into becoming a Kage level shinobi, making him train as rigorously as possible. And then we got to the Takigakure village and found Fu and promptly got her out of that hell-hole. And then we went to Wave Country and I sealed Haku and Zabuza, giving them the peace they deserved.

And then the Akatsuki appeared all of a sudden, wanting to kill me and capture the Nine Tailed Fox and the Seven Tailed Beetle. What horrors they would inflict on Naruto and Fu while they were under their thumb I couldn't even begin to describe.

But alas, that is not a story for this time. Father was still wanting to contain me, using his Philosopher's Stone to hold me inside him so he could use my powers. So, time to break out the big guns to crank him up!

I turned to face the backup Edward Elric had. As in the white clothed brigades, the armed forces of the past, so to speak. "You may all go now. I'll handle it from now on," I turned my gaze to Edward, "You may stay back, if you wish. Your brother will be brought back; that I assure you," and then I turned back to face the exhausted Father. He was really starting to grate my nerves, that guy. He just would _not_ die, would he?

I stomped on the ground. Most people would consider that pathetic, me stomping on the ground while a major enemy was right in front of me, wanting my powers. But here's the thing, what came out of the ground beneath Father was a gigantic – and when I say gigantic I mean absolutely massive – pillar of the five elements, electricity, water, earth, wind, but mostly just white fire. It was an absolute chaotic fire of the elements. Huh... that's a new one. Must think of a cool name for it now. 'Elements Release, Great Pillar'? No, sounds too flat. 'Elements Release, Pillar of Giants'? Yeah, that's more like it, but not enough...

Got it!

"Elements Release, Column from Hell," my whisper was drowned out by the glorious fires of the five elements and the cries of both astonishment and, well, happiness, I guess. The so called Column from Hell was so high it scraped the very skies. Not that I looked at that, but the roar of fire was astoundingly magnificent to listen to. It was almost as if I became an Uchiha all of a sudden, what with their love for all things fire. Speaking of the Uchiha, let them just try copy my new Elements Release jutsu; something that was, I might mention, quite draining of chakra, so much that even _I _felt it. And that says something. See who got the last laugh then, Uchiha! I'll inadvertently cause you all to die by chakra exhaustion! Ha! I'll kill you all-

Shit, not again! I really need to remove those eyes of mine. I swear they're the ones that are corrupting me, making me go crazy and all that. Normally I would have respected such craziness, but not when _I_ go crazy, thank you very much.

Anyway, stray thoughts aside, I was pretty sure it wasn't enough to ensure Father's death. But you can't kill all hope, right? My Elements Release jutsu should have severely weakened Father to the point of only having but a few souls in his Philosopher's Stone. So one more Elements Release jutsu might just work. Maybe an Elemental Release Rasengan? That would be awesome!

But that is all for another time. Maybe just a Wind Rasengan would do. After all, it would be best to be somewhat familiar to the Naruto universe. By using the Wind Rasengan I would be paying a tribute to Naruto, since he's a Wind Element user and all that.

I reached out with my hand to shape my purple and silver coloured chakra to something similar to the Rasengan, yet different. It was had a cone shaped likeness and was sharp to a point, with threads of chakra spinning in random directions like mad.

And then I enhanced it with Wind chakra, making it look suspiciously like shuriken star able to be thrown.

Which made me go curious. What if I could use it like a Wind chakra enhanced bullet? That would be so awesome! Besides, it's self-sustaining, meaning that once it's made it does not need to be constantly draining chakra from you. It's perfect for the ones with low amounts of chakra. And if it were a bullet, then it would not only be a close quarters ranged weapon. No, also a long ranged one. And considering how quickly I could make a single perfect Rasengan...

Anyway, that is all beyond the point. The point being that I needed to see if Father was truly dead. I wanted him to be dead, but I could as well just use Kamui on him to portal his ass to whatever dimension Kamui sends them to. Hopefully it would be the unforgiving Hell from Bleach. Or something. Not Hell from Dragon Ball Z. That shit is not Hell, just something that could be considered Purgatory instead.

As the Column from Hell died out I saw that sure enough, Father was still alive, but definitely not well. His silhouette was a grotesque balloon, his back bulging unnaturally, a red liquid creeping out his mouth and ears, even his eyes seemed to be crying the red liquid.

I smiled at the image, the smile eventually turning into a grin of giddiness that threatened to split my face in two; I swear I had to use a genjutsu or something on all the resident humans to actually make my grin like Truth's. I mean, why not? You can't write slaughter without laughter and all that.

Besides, why not take a little fun in an evil guy's misery? Evil guy, not a good guy, that is. If it's a good guy then don't take fun in it. Fuck 'em up who are making some good guy go all haywire. Like Father!

The fire finally died down completely, showing that, yes, Father was a morbid mockery of humankind. As I predicted his back was red and bulging outwardly in an ever increasing, but still slow enough, rate, and his eyes were completely and utterly white, no trace of any kind of humanity in them. The veins going to and from his eyes were bulging to the point where one of them burst, letting loose a flow of red glowing liquid that was probably a part of the Philosopher's Stone Father personified. His fingers were getting proportionally longer, to the point of where they were getting unbelievably so. His mouth was open wide in a grotesque manner, showing that a huge eye was beginning to sprout from it.

But the eye in Father's mouth was curiously enough looking straight at me.

Oh well, it was probably just Truth playing his tricks again.

I attached a string of chakra to my cone shaped perfected Rasengan and then I 'pushed' my perfected Rasengan to act like a bullet with but a string attached to it. As it closed in on Father the cone extended and extended, making it sharper and sharper to a point.

And then it penetrated Father's skin tissue and muscles, and when I detached the string of chakra the cone shaped Rasengan flew further and lodged itself stuck inside the concrete wall of the fortress we were all currently in.

The hole in Father was glaringly obvious, and Father let loose a mighty scream of pain, echoing loudly across the entire field of rubble strewn battleground.

And then what happened it canon happened in reality.

Father was swallowed up by tons of small black hands. But the hands also reached for me, but I expected as much. After all, I couldn't be an anomaly in the world of Fullmetal Alchemist.

* * *

><p>"Why? Why, god, why won't you be mine?" Father pathetically said, his whimpering black form floating in the white emptiness, his lone eye focused on me. I had my arms crossed and a frown on my face.<p>

"As I said, I'm not god. There is no such thing as 'god'." I said, cruelty and mirth both adorning the tone of my voice.

"But, if you're not god, then who is?" Father said. Hell, I was pretty sure I saw the beginnings of tears forming in his eyes.

"I am," Truth appeared right behind Father's pathetic form, taking the same shape as Father, a round floating ball of whiteness, a wide grin that was dangerously close to splitting Truth's face. The direct opposite of Father, who was a floating ball of blackness with a single dark eye and a crying frown on his lips.

I turned to 'god', "Wait, I thought those were only one of your _names_, not your actual status."

Truth turned to face me, still maintaining his fecal-matter-eating grin. "Why, you don't believe me?" but Truth didn't let me answer and continued to taunt Father.

I tuned out of it. It wasn't really my business, so to speak. I even skipped out the appearance of the blank gate, the miniature black hands grabbing onto the crying Father's black form, even Father's tearful pleadings to be good from then on.

Oh well. I didn't care much for the Fullmetal Alchemist universe anyway. Well, not as much as the Naruto universe, that is.

Silence followed after the disintegration of the gate.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, which was really just a few seconds of silence, Truth spoke up.

"Well, now that you are also disappearing you should start make your wish. After all, it's what you deserve for taking my place for a few minutes."

I'm disappearing already? Huh, how curious. I looked down to my hand, and sure enough, it was slowly dissipating into, of all things that it could dissipate to, paper. Probably an indication of...

Yeah, it was probably that.

"So, what's your wish?" Truth finished.

I smiled wickedly. "I want to be free from _it_."

Truth's smile just turned up a notch, if that was even possible. Apparently, it was. "Done."

* * *

><p>Several coffins raised itself from the ground, people were scared by them. They were expecting white men rupturing the ground to appear, but not coffins. Only a few recognized those coffins, and those that did were even more scared than most people.<p>

After all, it's not always that people get resurrected.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I know it's short, and for that I apologize. I'll try and rectify that mistake in the next chapter. I promise!


	29. Seven Strongest Swordsmen Of The Mist

**Author's Note:** I know, it's stupid to have an author's note in the beginning of the fic, but bare with me here.  
>Now, the message I want to get across are two things, the second being at the end of the fic. Now, I want you to keep in mind that this fiction is just that. Fiction. Keep that in mind. Got that in your mind while you're reading this piece of literature? Alright, now I also want to say that this story is also a way for me to flesh out my theories about the Rinnegan. Keep that in mind as well.<br>Thank you.

* * *

><p>I saw light open from the top of my line of vision, my head hanging low because of the state I was currently in. I didn't know who had been sacrificed to resurrect me, but whomsoever did it had my temporary gratitude. Temporary, because the very thought of someone being used to resurrect me just because they wanted power was horrifying to a certain extent.<p>

But that was not necessary to think of. Whoever was sacrificed, let's just say that I was grateful for him or her. And that that sacrifice would _not_ be in vain. I would live life to the fullest with my new found immortality.

Or so I hope. The word of Truth would carry heavy weight, seeing as it doesn't lie and all that, but who's to he would be able to do anything? I hoped that my belief in Truth's omnipotence was real. If it wasn't I'd be stuck being a mindless drone. Oh well, might as well just enjoy the last few minutes being alive now.

Now in what time had I been resurrected? There could be any number of possibilities, really, because there was the possibility of time dilation or time stagnation. Most likely it's the time dilation, since I knew of only two uses of the Summoning, Impure World Resurrection. I did hope that Kabuto-

Wait...

I had killed Kabuto and sealed him into a scroll. So who had resurrected me? Could it be some weird stalker of Orochimaru's that had been butt-fucked into servitude by him? Because it'd be a real pain in the ass if Orochimaru had been summoning the various Impure World Resurrection zombies, since if it really were him the storyline would be entirely different of the one I knew of. Sasuke was supposed to absorb Orochimaru, thus making Itachi seal away Orochimaru and removing Sasuke's Cursed Seal in proxy. But that would in turn make sure that no one would resurrect me, or anyone for that matter.

So who could it possibly be?

Once the crack that revealed the light widened I saw the magnificent sun. Finally. It felt as if an eternity had passed while I was waiting for that space to widen some. It was probably a moment to build extreme suspense. But the opening of the beige coloured coffin I was in would be inevitable anyway, and I could not really control it anyway, so why not just roll with the flow for now? It was fun to watch them be hanging in suspense, only to see that it'd be sweet little me.

Wait...

I was immortal, thus my problem with taijutsu was nullified, unless whoever summoned me decided to dispel me. That would be detrimental, so I'd have to kill the summoner quickly before he or she could do that. I'd have to be quick about it, though. If the one who resurrected me would know – which was quite likely, actually – then I'd be definitely screwed. Or so I thought. There was the possibility that if he or she disabled me then there was also the possibility that he or she had to deactivate _all_ the resurrected. It would explain why Kabuto didn't just make Itachi, when he broke free from the Impure World Resurrection.

Anyway, so the door finally landed heavily on the ground, giving a loud resounding boom of the heavy wooden door to the coffin hitting the dirt and gravel underneath the ground of which the coffin was on.

I saw hundreds, if not thousands, of shinobi and kunoichi, all lined up with vests on their torsos, weapons at the ready at a moment's notice, giant shuriken ready to be thrown, kunai at the ready to slash and thrash.

But the weapons and the amount of available shinobi and kunoichi wasn't what was having me worried.

It was my opponents.

Now I wasn't about to count the active shinobi or kunoichi as my enemies, no. It was the other Impurely Resurrected opponents that had be gotten worried.

Zabuza and Haku were there. That meant that the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist were there as well. That also meant that I already knew what was going to go on. Kakashi and perhaps Might Guy would be there. I couldn't properly remember more of the ones in that specific division, just Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy. But of course I knew there were more of them. I could, after all, see them.

I looked to my right, and sure enough I saw several coffins identical to the one I was in. There were the Seven of the strongest Swordsmen of the Mist, each perfectly lined up. And Zabuza was in the middle of the row of strong shinobi.

There was an eighth wooden coffin to the side, and as it opened I realized that of course it held the androgynous male, Haku. But I swear that Haku was a girl, though! Damn you Kishimoto-sama for not making him – or her – female! Wait... why would I be so concerned for whether or not–

Wait...

Is that Fu?

Shit, it is. What a damn fucking great reunion...

Well, we had been locking eyes with each other for quite a while, I even missed the mist creeping into the area at first until it completely shrouded my sight.

Dammit, if Fu's there then that must mean that Madara Uchiha was short one Path of Pain. Then who in the world would be used as that Path instead of Fu?

But that is not what I need to concern myself for at the time being. I needed to help the Allied Shinobi Forces, make sure that as few of them died as possible. Well, judging by the screams of pain and suffering – something that was making me feel disturbingly giddy, by the way – the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist had already started their slaughtering of the Allied Shinobi Forces. That wouldn't do at all.

I jumped forward with a chakra enhanced jump, ignoring the sudden urge to kill as many shinobi as possible – probably Kabuto that tried to make me go crazy on them – I mysteriously floated up in the air and shouted out loud, "Shinra Tensei!"

I imagined a pulse my chakra narrowly evading each and every living being around a kilometre diameter sphere, but pushing out everything else in that perimeter out of the way, effectively pushing the thick mist out of the way.

With startled shouts coming from a lot of the shinobi I landed right besides Fu. She was holding a kunai quite unsteadily, shaking like mad, tears threatening to spill at a push of a finger.

I smirked at her, even when a shuriken or two lodged themselves thick into my stomach and head. Nope, as I had hypothesized, no pain whatsoever. As suspected. Well, not really, but the Impurely Resurrected never shouted out in pain or anything. "What, something on my face?" I sarcastically added. I didn't take the current tension in consideration because, hell, why should I? It was fun, being immortal all of a sudden! You try it! I was feeling mighty giddy because of it. Besides, Fu was alright, right in front of me. Why should I not be giddy in excitement? It had probably been years of sadness and sorrow because of my death. It wasn't exactly anything I had been planning, but hey, why not go with the flow? I mean, for once, something unplanned had happened, yet it was not unpleasant at all. It was a glorious feeling, yes, yes. Quite so.

And speaking of a push of a finger I brought up a hand, something that only went unnoticed by Fu alone. The various shinobi and kunoichi tensed up a lot by my gesture. And then I tapped her on her forehead. "Silly, if you keep crying there won't be a time for happiness. So wipe your tears away. Don't look back upon my death and mourn. Look forward and rejoice that you will live another day. Stand up. Be strong."

I really didn't know why I had said that. Despite the fact that they sounded awfully familiar I just thought the sentences sounded appropriate together. Don't know why they sounded appropriate, like I had said them before or something. Oh well, time to think about that at a later date anyway.

I turned away towards the Impurely Resurrected and slammed my fist into my open palm, grinned widely and said, "Well then, let's kick some ass!"

I jumped forwards with a lot of chakra enhancing my jump and I landed behind the Seven strongest Swordsmen of the Mist. Specifically I landed behind Zabuza. There was a stray thought that all of a sudden emerged within the depths of my mind. It was absurd, implausible, far-fetched, out of this world, whatever you would like to call it, but I thought that since I could use the abilities of another bloodline, specifically the Sharingan and the Mangekyo Sharingan, I could perhaps use other bloodlines. Maybe the Ice Release, Lava Release or Boil Release.

Or Wood Release.

So with that in mind I ran through some hand seals that just came to me, but felt like it came from my eyes. Which got me thinking. Maybe everything that concerned me and chakra was because of my Rinnegan, my prodigious skills in ninjutsu and genjutsu was perhaps because of the Rinnegan, my skills in the knowledge of the twelve hand seals, the speed of which I did them, my ridiculously high chakra reserves, everything, was because of my Rinnegan eyes? That itself was not absurd at all, it was actually a plausible stray thought.

But anyway, the last four hand seals I did was Dog, Tiger, Dragon and Snake, then slammed my hand down on the ground. I imagined a lot of trees growing just behind each of the to be tied down Seven strongest Swordsmen of the Mist, using its ridiculously strong chakra enhanced branches to hold onto the Seven Swordsmen.

And sure enough trees grew, just as I had imagined. Right behind each of the Seven Swordsmen, the trees tying its branches around each of them. I constantly reinforced the trees with chakra, making sure that none of the Swordsmen could escape the bindings. Which actually made the trees grow insanely much, taller than any tree you could think of, well above three hundred yards tall and ending up joining up in the top, making a seven linked tree with green leaves that actually, as I pumped more chakra into the wood made them turn a magnificent silver colour. A phenomenon that I'd think about at a later date. I looked up in amazement at my handiwork. "Well, I didn't expect that. But it ain't unwelcome."

I looked back to the shinobi through a crack in the trees, "What the fuck are you doing? Seal the fuckers away before they kill any of you!", subconsciously enhancing my voice with some chakra. And since I was almost literally both a chakra monster and now immortal – thus unlimited chakra in a sense – I would probably never run out of chakra. Probably and hopefully.

And that sure got them running with their sealing gear at the ready.

"Ugh, what is with these trees?" I heard a gruff voice say right in front of me. It was probably Zabuza who had gotten a little bit out of the hold of the Impure World Resurrection jutsu.

"What the hell is this shit?" a voice to the right of Zabuza shouted.

"Where did these trees come from?" another to Zabuza's right yelled.

"What the fuck?" yet another voice bellowed to Zabuza's left.

Seems that all the Seven Swordsmen had been taken out of the emotional hold of the Impure World Resurrection. Not that I cared much. I didn't remember any of their names except for Zabuza Momochi and Kisame Hoshigaki, but that was only because they were important for the story.

"Look," I said, still enhancing my voice with chakra to talk to the Seven Swordsmen. My voice was followed by silence of the swordsmen. "I'll explain. You have been resurrected by someone via the Summoning, Impure World Resurrection-"

"What the fuck are you talking about?" I heard Zabuza say.

"Do you want to hear me out or not?" I said as I stood up to use shunshin to get in front of the Seven Swordsmen, specifically Zabuza. Again.

"Alright, fine. So what is it you want to say?" some white haired dude said, though I was sure that he reminded me of someone. Oh right-

And his eyes began to glaze over and he turned into water to escape the bondage of the trees. That was strange. I also noticed that each and every one of the Seven Swordsmen's eyes were beginning to go all glassy-eyed, but some where fighting to stay awake, shaking their heads. But some of the swordsmen began to try in a futile effort to break free from the bind.

I sighed. Fuck. It was just my luck that someone got out of the bindings of the tree. Well, I had to deal with the Suigetsu lookalike-

Oh right! Of course! It was his brother, the one who had mastered all the swords of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. How could I forget that? Silly me.

Wait. If he was turning into water, then...

Oh shit!

I went through two hand seals, Snake and Tiger, and took a deep breath in, changing the air I had inhaled with extremely much lightning natured chakra to the point of bursting, making my chest swell up disproportionally.

And then I exhaled, sending loose a torrent of paralysing lightning towards the puddle of water that was Suigetsu's brother. "Lightning Release, Lightning of Paralysing!" The water stilled and frizzled with electric energy before amassing at one point and beginning to solidify.

Oh yeah! Suigetsu's liquefying technique's weakness was lightning. I totally forgot that for a while there. Darui, one of the Raikage's soldiers, had used his electrified sword to slice into Suigetsu, which in turn made Suigetsu unable to properly liquefy. What knowledge I had of the Naruto timeline and the universe and its characters was really beginning to shine now, I think.

The struggles of the Seven Swordsmen were useless, futile. Whoever took the place Kabuto had to take in canon had to stop trying to break the Impurely Resurrected out of the hold of the trees I had created. They were, after all, enhanced extremely much by my own very potent chakra.

I sighed again and turned around to face the various stunned faces of the shinobi and kunoichi that surrounded me. With an apathetic face I told them all, "Well, what are you waiting for? Seal them."

That once again shook them all out of their stupor and they charged their sealing scrolls with chakra to send them off towards the Seven strongest Swordsmen the Mist had ever had. Except, of course, from Kisame Hoshigaki. I wondered why the one who had taken Kabuto's place hadn't revived him, but alas, I wasn't about to complain. It would be a pain in the ass to fight the fish guy, what with his Tailed Beast level chakra and his sword-that-shaves, Samehada. He's probably the only other person who is a tailless Tailed Beast, me being the other one, of course.

After the shinobi had sealed off the Seven Swordsmen I turned around just to see ice freezing the air around me, creating mirrors around the space I occupied.

This seemed awfully familiar...

Oh right.

Haku's Demonic Ice Crystal Mirrors or whatever it was. Haku was able to jump from one mirror to another to confuse the enemy. The mirrors were also resistant to fire, or at least from Sasuke's Great Fireball Technique from his Genin days. Ah, well, all that information would do me no good if they were surrounding me all of a sudden, right?

I looked up, and sure enough, the mirrors even got that angle covered.

I cracked my neck and knuckles. Time to get serious with Haku's Demonic Ice Crystal Mirrors. Or whatever.

Then all of a sudden Haku appeared, his rather feminine face not covered by his stolen ANBU mask. He – dammit, why can't I think of Haku as a girl? He's – or she's – so freaking feminine I can't think of him – her – as anything _but_ a girl! Goddammit all to hell! – withdrew some senbon from his pouch that was on his hip and began to pelt me with senbon. Senbon came from every imaginable angle, hitting me, some even going through me. Yet I felt no pain at all. None. None whatsoever. The senbon came from above me, to my right, to my left, behind me, in front of me.

Except for below me.

Slowly, just to taunt whomsoever had taken Kabuto's place in history, I went through a few hand seals, Rat, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake. "Earth Release, Hiding Like a Mole Technique!" I whispered, and suddenly, with a great burst of speed the earth below me swallowed me up, only to spit me out again right behind one of the mirrors of ice.

Going through another pair of hand seals, Horse and Tiger, I inhaled a great deal of air, once again making my chest swell up grotesquely, since I had added chakra into the mix. I imagined the air in my grown lungs becoming fire by channelling chakra to it. As my chest once again grew I spat out a vast ball of fire. Fortunately for me, the fireball was only large enough to cover the mirrors made out of Ice natured chakra, not the magnificent tree behind it. That would be so annoying if that had happened, the tree being burnt. I loved the silver leaves it had. It was probably a result of my own chakra, what with my Susanoo being a silver colour and all.

Oh, there's an idea. Maybe I could use the Susanoo a bit more. But I would have to be conscious of my emotions. I should not be a killing machine that got his kicks off of killing people. It's a sick and twisted path to tread upon. So I would not go there. It would, in fact be detrimental to my health. Along with others'.

Just to test it out I closed my eyes and began focusing on my chakra. I activated my Susanoo, willing it to even don some silvery armour, similar to the armour Itachi's Susanoo had. That meant it probably in its right hand held the glowing and fiery blade, the Sword of Totsuka. And in its left hand held the shield that could deflect anything and everything, the Yata Mirror. I opened my eyes, and sure enough, there was my silver coloured Susanoo, clad in very intimidating armour, with a sword in hand and a shield in the other.

"Susanoo!" I said lowly. I heard many startled gasps from the various shinobi and kunoichi around me. Obviously the shinobi and kunoichi of the Allied Shinobi Forces didn't expect to see a Susanoo all of a sudden.

But alas, I couldn't focus on explaining what it was I had around my form, since quite a few senbon burned right in front of me. Apparently my Susanoo burns metal, as opposed to Sasuke Uchiha's Susanoo, where it just makes it shatter. Ha, how pathetic of the Uchiha. I'd rather kill them now and be done with it–

Hmm... I was right. It did in fact seem like that using my Susanoo, or even my Mangekyo Sharingan abilities for that matter, makes my blood-lust surge to new heights. I'd have to be careful.

But still, I couldn't deny the fact that it felt pleasurable to have the Susanoo active. I'd have to focus on that feeling and harness it, change it into power. That would be much more proficient to my doings than just let the pleasure flow through me, resulting me in becoming a blood seeking, blood-letting being of destruction and carnage.

Now that did seem an attracting offer. But no, I'd have to deny it. What would Anko do to me if she saw me as a bumbling fool of slaughtering madness? She would probably cut me up with her personalized kunai. That kunai haunted my nightmares for many days... but anyway, looking past all that, I'd have to say that I would definitely have to deal with Haku.

So when I saw him –_ her_ – charge at me I just stabbed him –_ her – _with my silvery Sword of Totsuka lookalike, effectively sealing him in a gourd my Susanoo had in its third arm. Quite creepy, the third arm.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Now the second thing I want to say is that I am putting all my stories (as in both of them) on hold for an indefinite amount of time. The reason being that I don't have much inspiration. I like to think of inspiration as currency, and life events being my paydays. So you'll have to wait for a bit. But I swear to you, reader, that I will not_, not,_ abandon any fiction I make! This I swear to you!

Also, if you want me to respond to your review, please mention so in said review. I read each and every one of them! Also, if you want me to respond, please log in to do so. I will not respond through a chapter. I see that as just taking up space.


	30. Defeating And Conquering

My silver Susanoo dissipated into nothingness, just like I willed it to. It was strange, actually. How come my chakra did whatever I wanted it to? I was sure it had something to do with my Rinnegan. But if my chakra would do whatever I wanted it to, then it would also be able to do the 'Creation of All Things' jutsu, originally made by the Sage of the Six Paths. What a legendary jutsu, I think. The jutsu that created the nine tailed beasts. But alas, that would require several hundred of hand seals – information I somehow knew, probably because of the Rinnegan in my eye sockets – something I was not about to dedicate time to. Precious time that I could be using to spend reuniting with Fu. Reuniting with Fu and Naruto was without a doubt very important. Too bad Anko was dying or dead... _fuck Orochimaru to the tenth circle of hell!_

So I turned around to face the stunned faces of the shinobi and kunoichi that were around me. But I didn't look at them. I merely looked at the shaken Fu. Weird, that. Why was she shaken? Oh, what a stupid question. Of course she was shaken. She had just witnessed my resurrection by the hand of whomever took the place Kabuto was supposed to take. So yes, me, a very stupid question. But I disregarded my inner voice telling me those derogatory things to myself and walked slowly towards Fu. The ninja around me and in between looked at us with strange facial expressions, like some were constipated or something. Hilarious in any other situation, but not this time. Not today. Not while I had to properly reunite with Fu. Too bad it couldn't be Anko. Fuck Orochimaru, may he rot in a fiery hell.

I closed the distance between Fu and me, Fu shaking all the while, a strange expression of disbelief and happiness on her face. It, just like the constipated faces of the shinobi and kunoichi around us, would be comical and amusing in any other situation but this one. Probably. Probably... anyway, I hugged her tightly. And Fu hugged back, tightly. Or I think it was tight, I wouldn't know. I felt nothing. What a bad thing, yeah? Resurrection by Impure World Resurrection sure as hell sucked in some senses. Not feeling a thing, but immortal at the same time. I wonder if you could age as an Impurely Resurrected. Maybe, maybe not. Who cared, to be honest? I just wanted to make sure that Naruto and Fu, hopefully also Akahime and Kazue got some inner peace when I decided to go. Or something. After all, I couldn't be immortal forever. I didn't want to stay. But I would help Naruto in making sure that Madara would _never_ come back.

Fu began to cry heavily, despite the odd looks between the various shinobi and kunoichi. I burrowed my face in Fu's lime green hair, yet I could not smell a thing. Nor feel a thing. Nothing. Apparently the only sensations I could feel were sight and hearing. That would be the only senses I had. How depressing, actually. Not being able to feel anything, no senses being filled to the brim. Never again. Unless, of course, someone decided to perfect the Impure World Resurrection. But before anyone would even _think _of doing so I would be there to kill them real slow for that thought alone. I have no idea what went through the head of the Second Hokage, but if I could travel back in time I would definitely stop him from developing it. It was a disgrace to humankind. Perhaps I could somehow utilize my chakra for time travel so I could change the future in a good way. Perhaps to the period where Konoha was founded. That way I could perhaps assassinate Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage, and take the mantle of Second Hokage instead of him. Either that or convince him that Impure World Resurrection is a really bad idea, something he should _never _do _ever_.

Looking past the horrifying experience and epiphany I just had – the one with probably not being able to feel ever again – I tightened my hold on the crying Fu. I didn't know at the time that I had over a dozen shuriken and kunai stuck in my back because of the paranoid ninja. Ninja were always so paranoid. They were supposed to. If they weren't, who was supposed to be paranoid then? No one, that's who. Naruto wanted to stop all war, yet Madara and several others wanted to gain peace through war. It was a common misconception of the human mind. You never, ever, gain peace through war. War always leads to hatred, which in turn makes conflicts arise. Tensions between factions, clans, countries, hidden villages, will rise. One stupid move – something humanity is prone to do – and humankind will face yet another war. And once that war is over more tension and animosity between the faction that lost and the faction that won will rise, creating a cycle of hatred. It is just as Nagato described it. The only way to make sure that war will _never_ rise again is to ensure the complete annihilation of humanity. Other than that there is a way to hold back war for several decades. But war is, and always will be, severely integrated into human psychology. It prevents humans to find true peace. True peace does not exist. Unless there is some timeless immortal governing everything. But there isn't. I would not count my current state as such, for there is no guarantee that the Impure World Resurrection will hold forever. And besides, I would rather vote for complete and utter peace. As in the downfall of humankind. That's what I would vote for. But that is because I am a pessimist, nothing else.

Anyhow, I looked around and asked the nearest ninja, who happened to be a brown haired nondescript kunoichi holding a windmill shuriken at the ready in front and to the right of me, "Where is your commanding officer? Kakashi Hatake, I believe his name was," I asked of her. Fu was still letting tears flow through her eyes, but I disregarded how wet it made my white kimono. After all, why should I be concerned? I couldn't feel it anymore, what with the Impure World Resurrection being in the way and all.

I saw Kakashi approach us from the left. He had a suspicious look on his eyes and had his Sharingan uncovered. But he was looking with both eyes open. That must mean he was serious, yet willing to listen to what I had to say. That was good. I had to tell him that Naruto had encountered the big breasted Hokage, Tsunade, and the burly and towering Raikage, A. I wonder how the timeline would change if I told the Allied Shinobi Forces the whereabouts of the Akatsuki base. I could probably arrive there within a day, using an chakra overpowered shunshin and whatnot, and meet up with Itachi Uchiha, explain the situation and show to him the proper way to the Akatsuki base.

"What do you want, Takuma-san?" Kakashi said slowly. It was really demeaning, actually. Kakashi spoke as if I were a child. Or I think he did. I could have been mistaken, mistaking Kakashi's slow talking with being careful, or perhaps interested but not in the common way. I didn't really know, and honestly did not really care. Either way, I blushed an interesting shade of red in anger, but I coughed into my hand and repressed the feeling of acrimony.

I glanced at Fu for less than a second and diverted my attention back to Kakashi, but I was still holding onto Fu. The great tree cast a large shadow, covering us, and the sun was low in the sky. That indicated that not only would White Zetsu be on the move soon, ready to kill as many shinobi and kunoichi as possible, sowing chaos in the ranks of the Allied Shinobi Forces. I said to Kakashi, "I know where the Akatsuki base is," and the reaction I got was tremendous. There were cheers coming from the many ninja around me, Kakashi and Fu. Fu's hug just got tighter, not that I felt it. I looked down, and saw that she was blushing a shade of red that really caught my attention. It was probably from being close to the center of attention. It was something Fu was never good at, being the center of attention. It had taken a while to get Fu out of her shy shell, but when she was out of it – she often went straight back into it – she was a very kind hearted and gentle person, something that shy people are wont to be, without a doubt. Take a look at Hinata Hyuuga, for example. But then again, she could also be quite as determined as Naruto as well, what with her face off with Nagato, or in that time's case, Pain.

Which reminded me. How was Hinata's and Naruto's relationship? I hoped at that moment that they were together. Otherwise my efforts in trying to get them together were in vain. And I didn't like my efforts being in vain. Like how I died. Why did I have to die? I wanted to train Naruto some more, make him go closer to a Kage lever shinobi. Otherwise it would all be for naught. I sincerely hoped that my efforts had a positive effect on the Naruto world. Or else I would be doomed. I think... oh well, never mind it, anyway. It was not that important.

Kakashi held up a hand and put his other hand on his forehead protector to cover his Sharingan eye. Immediately silence covered the area. "First a few questions need to be asked," he said lazily. Once again he returned to his lazy demeanour, putting both of his hands in his pockets.

I smiled lightly and proceeded to say, "Of course. Shoot, Hatake," and patted Fu on her hair and stepped a single step away from her. I was still within arm's reach, holding onto her shoulder as I was, but I needed to concentrate, and I speak from experience when I say that I cannot concentrate properly when I am hugging someone. It detracts from my necessary thought processes and leaves me vulnerable to exclamations that would otherwise be harmful to my reputation. But alas, I still needed to know what Kakashi wanted to ask of me. I came up with many hypothesises at that specific moment. There was the chance that he wanted to know about why I was free from the Impure World Resurrection's control. What would I respond to that? How should I respond to that? There were many possible things I could respond with. But I didn't really know what I could counter with. There were so many possibilities. I guess I simply just had to wing it as it was, then.

Kakashi frowned. Oh dear, did I say something to offend him? Oh wait, I didn't add a suffix to his name. Oh dear me, how silly of me. I had to be careful of what I said from then on. Apparently my trip in the Fullmetal Alchemist universe had changed me a little. Oh well, never mind those things. It was not important to the relevant status of the situation I was in at the moment. How verbose of me. "How are you free from the Impure World Resurrection's hold?" Kakashi shifted slightly on one foot, looking seemingly nervous, "From what I know of the jutsu, its hold is said to be unbreakable," Kakashi said. His last sentence made the less emotionally controlled ninja a bit nervous about me, like I was some sort of risky wild card. Which in all honesty I was. Quite the unpredictable card, if I had any say in it.

Suddenly I got the intense urge to charge forward and deal as much damage to the Allied Shinobi Forces as possible. I hurriedly grabbed my head in sudden pain. Or was it really pain? It was some sort of sensation in my head. It felt like some sort of train with a chewing mouth on its front was charging at my brain and eating it quickly. It was strange, because in most cases that would be painful – very much so in fact – but it was only the sensation of the train chewing my brain that I felt, not the nerves signalling to my pain receptors that I was flooding over with pain. Oh well, I decided to not look a gift horse in the mouth – still I felt no pain from it, only the sensation itself – and answer the tensed up Kakashi. After I had shaken my head to clear my jumbled up thoughts first, of course. "The hold of the Impure World Resurrection is not unbreakable," those words surprised Kakashi a great deal. After all, it wasn't always that your preconceptions of a jutsu became demolished, now, was it?

"There are ways to break the hold? What are they? And how did you break it?" Kakashi asked hastily. He was supported by many of the Allied Shinobi Forces, them yelling either 'Yeah, how?' or 'I don't really understanding anything, but alright, I'll bite! How?'. Or something along those lines, whichever stimulates your tastes the most.

I chuckled good naturedly and proceeded to tell Kakashi, "In that order; yes, there are ways to break the hold the Impure World Resurrection has on the Impurely Resurrected. The only way I know of would be through either a Mangekyo Sharingan genjutsu, namely Koto Amatsukami, owned by the late Shisui Uchiha," now that startled everyone around me, even making Fu jump slightly, even whispering something I could not really hear. But that was alright. I knew that whatever it was it wasn't that important. Not that I thought that Fu was unimportant or anything, it was just that I thought that what Fu _said_ was unimportant at that _specific_ moment. "Or through possessing the cells of Hashirama Senju," I made up on the spot. I didn't want people to question me about how I really broke it, so I lied to seem realistic. And besides, does it not seem unrealistic if I said 'Oh, I broke it through having a favour of an omnipotent god. But don't worry! That god is Truth, it isn't some form of common deity!' or something along those lines. No, definitely not good for my reputation. I would be taken as a maniac. Definitely.

"And how did I break it, you ask?" I tapped my chin with a finger a few times before shrugging a little, "I guess you could see the evidence of it behind me," I said, eyes closed and I smiled widely. I had lied a little. Though I did hope that no one was suspicious of me. I mean, possessing Hashirama Senju's cells? Really... and he was resurrected by Orochimaru as well, so why shouldn't he be free of the hold? I hoped at that moment that no one knew of it.

"Bullshit!" someone loudly exclaimed loudly, bringing both Kakashi's, mine, and everyone else's attention to him. Bullshit, he said? Who might he be? I looked at him, and he was fairly unexceptional, brown hair and brown eyes, Allied Shinobi Forces forehead protector displayed proudly on his forehead. But his voice seemed quite familiar. But anyway, his appearance wasn't what was important anyway. It was what he said. Why would he claim my words to be 'bullshit'? I had to get that answer, and soon. And prepare for whatever claims that person had that contradicted with my own.

I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Oh, and why is that?" I asked sceptically. I tilted my head forwards to signify dubiousness. I didn't want to seem to be a liar, despite what I had said in my letter to Anko, Naruto and Fu. Oh well, who cared anyway? If I was a liar then so be it. I would be. Besides, if I had to fight everyone around, then I'd win. Both because I was immortal and because I had absolutely massive chakra reserves, as stated many times by now.

"I am the ANBU captain you fought with! I fought the First Hokage while you were fighting the Second, remember? If requiring the First Hokage's cells, then why in the world was he controlled?" he yelled angrily, practically glaring at me. Now who was Turtle again? Oh right, the one who fought the First Hokage in the barrier the Sound Four had made, the one who was a little bit too proud to accept my help, thinking that he could do it himself. That Turtle ANBU captain! Right...

Oh shit. Now how should I do this? I could say that Orochimaru had only focused his chakra to those two, controlling them like the Paths of Pain, but that would mean that Orochimaru had practised it, which was not really that good for the Sound population. So, how should I approach that claim? Oh dear me. Think Shinji, think!

But first, "Ah, that Turtle! Right, right, that Turtle..." Turtle fumed a little at my forgetfulness. But never mind him, I had to sate Turtle's – and the shinobi's and kunoichi's – curiosity, so I had to come up with an answer, and quick. Think, Takuma, think! Think, think, think, think, think, think...

Got it! I tapped my chin once again in thought and said, "Well, didn't you see Orochimaru stab a pair of kunai into the brothers' heads? The sealing tags attached to the kunai must have been what has strengthened the hold the Impure World Resurrection had on them, therefore, what with my lack of kunai with a seal in my head, I must be free from it!" I splayed my arms wide in a grandiose manner, signifying the end of the small, but important, discussion.

Kakashi managed to step into the conversation Turtle and I had, and asked me a question that sent me in a nervous loop. How should I answer it? I mean, I could be considered a grave robber if I answered incorrectly. I could also be considered a liar, something I should have admitted at the beginning of my entry of the Naruto world.

In short, I was fucked.

"If that is so, then how did you come in possession of Hashirama Senju's, the First Hokage's, cells?" Kakashi Hatake demanded. He took a threatening step forward, trying to intimidate me as much as possible.

Well, shit. There were a few answers that I could say. But each and every one of them would mean that I would get either attacked or detested by the populace of the Shinobi Nations. Oh dear. What should I do? I did not want to be detested by the shinobi, and definitely not Naruto or Fu. I couldn't think about that now, though. I had to think in another manner instead. Yes, I had to think outside the proverbial box.

"Who's to say I am in possession of the First Hokage's cells? I am most definitely not a grave robber, thank you very much," I exclaimed loudly. Though on the inside – and I was totally sure that Kakashi and most ninja around could see that I was lying my ass off, sort of, anyway – I was sweating profusely. I did not want everyone to hate me just because I had claimed something that would be otherwise inhumane. Stealing a Hokage's DNA for selfish reasons, how unoriginal. Danzo and Madara be damned.

Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow. "Then when were you put under the genjutsu you mentioned? My own Mangekyo Sharingan is a space-time based Mangekyo Sharingan, not a genjutsu based one," now that was a very good basis to work on. Good job, Hatake. If Kakashi's Mangekyo Sharingan had the attack based space-time jutsu of the Mangekyo Sharingan – the left eye – then the right eye must be the defence oriented. There could be many things that ability could be-

Madara Uchiha possessed it.

Now where did that thought come from? Though I should not care about where the thought came from, since what the thought itself brought on was quite descriptive in a sense. Madara had the ability to space-time migrate to where ever he wanted to. That could, in a sense, be taken as a defensive ability. There is also the fact that Kakashi's Kamui didn't work against Madara for some reason. And with several other factors, it could be that Madara has merely taken Obito Uchiha's Sharingan, found a way past the requirement of the Mangekyo Sharingan, thus upgrading the Sharingan. Which means that Madara would be invulnerable to Kakashi's Kamui. But oh well, that is all for another time...

But no, I had to deal with Kakashi Hatake's question, or demand, whatever it was. If I didn't, well, it would not be pretty for anyone. "Neither," I said mysteriously. I saw in my peripheral vision that Fu was looking at me with much curiosity, as were many of the Allied Shinobi Forces around me. I only met the eyes of Kakashi Hatake, however. I did not try to divert my attention anywhere else other than straight at him.

Kakashi's visible eyebrow lowered quite considerably, "Then how?" he asked. He tensed up his stance, preparing probably for battle. He did not need to, but he didn't know that. Alas, how should I convince everyone I meant no harm? Kazue was needed for that, and he wasn't as chipper anymore, probably because of my abandoning Water Country and my death. Which meant that he was probably not in any war effort, thus his unnatural perceptiveness could not be properly used. Oh well, fecal matter happens. Or so they say, anyway.

I chuckled, closing my eyes to seem enigmatic. That sure made everyone tense up a lot. Even Fu tensed up. How strange. Oh well. I opened my eyes to look Kakashi down past my nose. To seem omnipotent, you see, omniscient, even. Or something along those lines. "Wouldn't you like to know...?" I said mysteriously. I didn't want to be found out about my relation to any deity just yet. So stalling for time was the best option I had right then. Besides, it was fun, watching everyone being as tense as a bowstring, all because of little old me.

Kakashi's frown deepened some more. Ha. He deserved not knowing, what with him not being a good sensei to Naruto and his team. I mean come on! He only taught them tree walking. And that was all he ever taught them! Besides perhaps the occasional teamwork exercise. Probably. "Tell me, or else," Kakashi threatened. Ha, like he could threaten me! I was immortal. There was no way that Kakashi would be able to kill me. But that didn't mean that he couldn't harm me. There were people I cared about. But there was no way that Kakashi would harm my own precious people. Right?

I scoffed, "Or else what? You'll kill me?" I taunted mockingly. I chuckled a little under my breath. But then my gaze turned very, very serious. "If you even think of threatening Fu or anyone else I care about, then you're dead," I stated plainly, as if I were merely stating a fact of life. It scared most of them, but for some reason Fu looked up to me and disregarded all I had said, just grateful to see me. Or I think so. I wasn't exactly as good as Kazue at reading people. But it was an adequate guess. Or so I thought, at least.

Kakashi just sighed and turned around and called off all the shinobi and kunoichi to deal with another threat.

Suddenly there was an explosion, rocking the earth, and a scream of agonized pain.

Apparently we had totally forgotten about Pakura and Gari, the Scorch Release wielder and the Explosion Release wielder, respectively.

I looked around to see Gari and Pakura both slaughtering shinobi and kunoichi left and right, not letting up even a little bit. But you could definitely see that they were possessed, what with their discoloured eyes and blank faces, not even a hint of remorse at all. Which in and of itself wasn't surprising really.

But unfortunately their trajectory was leading them directly to me. They were in haste as well. Oh well, might as well consider them enemies. But I had an easy way of dealing with them anyway, so no biggie.

I took what I thought was a tight hold on Fu and jumped backwards, onto a branch on the silver leafed tree I had made. I set her down and pointed to the Impurely Resurrected that were left, "Stay here while I deal with them, alright?"

Fu answered "A-Alright, Takuma-sensei," and as I jumped down I heard her yell, surprisingly enough, "Be careful!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Here I will answer the messages some of you have left me. Oh, and I thank you for reviewing! I really love it! ;) I encourage reviewing, it ensures that I will update much quicker. And do leave more than just "Nice chapter!", or something like that, please.  
>Anyway, the answers to the messages I've gotten:<p>

**MovesLikeJagger:** No, I apologize, I do not take requests for any dimensions I could make Shinji travel through. The title might be a little misleading in that sense. xD

**Condy: **I'm glad you think it's a nice chapter! Also, I chose Fullmetal Alchemist because I wanted to pay tribute to the emotional series. It's a magnificent series, oh yes, oh yes. Very much so! And no, Bleach won't appear. Though I might actually do that... thank you for the suggestion! *hint hint for the future?*  
>And no, I apologize, I don't have any tips for your future. All you can do is step up and don't give up. That is all.]<p>

Please, as a favor to me, please please please review! I am loving it like the twin golden arches when you do! I don't care what the content of the review is, I will still appreciate it!  
>I apologize for seeming like a beggar, but 30 chapters and 110 reviews don't really seem that good to me... not to degrade or diminish the time you have spent writing any of the reviews, I might add! No! I mean, I'm loving you guys for reviewing! Aargh, you know what I mean!<p> 


	31. The Mind Of A Criminal

I landed heavily on the ground in the shade of the giant silver leafed tree, creating hairline cracks around my area of landing. Thankfully my geta sandals were a type specifically designed for ninja, making them nigh unbreakable from sudden pressures, so they didn't even crack slightly. Thank goodness for that, yeah? Otherwise I'd have to have several pairs of geta sandals at the ready immediately, or have a pair of ninja sandals, I don't really know. But if I chose ninja sandals I'd definitely go for the dark blue pair. Blue had previously been a favourite colour of mine before purple got into the mix. I really like purple now. Oh well, that is all for another time, Shinji Takuma. Concentrate on getting Pakura and Gari down for the count. That would definitely help me get in the good terms in the Allied Shinobi Forces' books, and in proxy, Kakashi Hatake's. Bah, focus, Shinji, focus!

I looked towards the location Gari occupied. He was currently punching one of the shinobi, the Landmine Fist, I identified as the shinobi Gari threw a punch at exploded into bloody bits. How gory and unsavoury, the Explosion Release. But I couldn't deny the rush of excitement I got whenever I heard those glorious explosions. Deidara would be so proud of Gari, yes yes, very much so. However I couldn't have Gari go wild on the Shinobi. But I didn't want to use the Susanoo, as it made me go a little insane every now and then. That would be detrimental to my efforts, becoming insane. Anyway, that would mean that I had to weaken Gari and Pakura so that the seals crew could properly seal up the rest of the impurely resurrected; not including me, of course. I still had to give out the information about the location of the Akatsuki base.

So I sprinted towards the impurely resurrected Gari while enhancing my legs with chakra. It effectively made me go in a full on sprint towards him. As I approached him rapidly I jumped up with a burst of chakra and prepared a chakra enhanced fist, similar to the technique Tsunade uses every now and then, to ensure that Gari would get properly, or whatever, reintroduced to the ground. Harshly. My descent's trajectory sure enough brought me down towards Gari, and I slammed down on-

The ground.

Gari had evaded before I could properly make contact with him, bringing up space between me and Gari. Wise choice, whomsoever took Kabuto's place, wise choice. It was also wise having Pakura distract the rest of the shinobi and kunoichi. However, Kakashi landed next to me and prepared to battle with Gari. I turned my eyes towards his general direction and pointed to where Pakura was scorching Kakashi's subordinates. "Aren't you supposed to be there, dealing with her?" I coldly stated. Then I turned my attention back to the Explosion Release wielder.

I heard Kakashi scoff lightly and also heard him jump somewhere. Without a doubt towards the battle between the Allied Shinobi Forces and Pakura, the Scorch Release wielder.

Now it was time for me to focus on the battle between me and Gari. I shouldn't use Susanoo, what with the incoming blood-lust it gave me. But if I had no other choice I would choose to just seal Gari up and that would be it. But no, I would rather not risk having to have a craving for blood. It would be highly unhealthy for absolutely everyone, including the Allied Shinobi Forces. Oh well, now was not the time to think about that, Shinji Takuma, it was time to properly deal with the threat that Gari posed to the various shinobi and kunoichi.

I took a threatening step forward and took a basic taijutsu stance I had been vaguely taught by Mei Terumi – once again I cannot thank her enough with the training she has kindly given me, no – to prepare myself for the oncoming battle. There was also the solution of using Bansho Ten'in mixed with the Soul Separation on Gari, but I did not want to reveal to the Allied Shinobi Forces that I had the Rinnegan. There would be a huge fuss over it, and people would scour the world for my body, and then there would be war over it. There is always war over power. Just take Kumo's attempted kidnapping Hinata as an example. Sure, not many knew of my possession of the Rinnegan, and many would just count Bansho Ten'in as an attraction jutsu, and Soul Separation as a jutsu that was somehow related to the many different kinds of chakra absorption techniques, but I would rather not risk it, just in case. Besides, it would be a boring match-up between me and Gari if I just did that. And I would get bored eventually by the tremendous power I had at my disposal.

Anyway, I tensed up my muscles, or whatever they were when I was impurely resurrected – since my body was made out of some sort of hollow paper shell or something – coiling them, making them ready to strike quickly at a moment's notice. I quickly formed the Ram seal and sent out a small pulse of chakra throughout my chakra points, dispelling the weights I probably had. I didn't feel any lighter, but then again, I wouldn't really feel anything anyway. Quickly I ran forwards, idly noting that the ground made not a single sound as I stepped on it with my geta sandals, and that I was not faster at all, meaning that the chakra I had sent out had gone to complete waste, and I jumped into the air. I prepared to hammer Gari with a chakra enhanced fist of mine, to cave in his head, whatever would sate myself. But Gari jumped to the side once again, making the ground he had previously occupied into a large crater. I looked up only to see Gari about to punch me hard in the face.

Enhancing my reflexes with Lightning chakra I managed to chakra jump backwards and skid along the surface of the ground. Gari charged at me with great speed, and had I not enhanced my reflexes with Lightning chakra, thus increasing the speed of which my brain processed thoughts, I would not be able to properly see that Gari was aiming a foot at my chest. I jumped to the side. I was not intent on blocking an Explosion Release wielder when he could make both of his fists practically into landmines, which would probably also go for his feet, thank you very much.

I went through a few hand seals, Tiger, Ram, Dog, Snake, and I inhaled some air. Once that air was inside my lungs – or whatever – I streamed Earth chakra through the air and converted it into mud. It would probably taste disgusting if I had any sense of taste, but thankfully, in this case at least, I did not have the pleasures of the sense of taste. How quaint, yes? Anyway, I spat out the mud I had clotting my systems and the mud, once on the ground, spread out widely over the area, covering the ground with a muddy brown instead of a grassy green. "Earth Release, Captivating Mud technique!" I thought in my head. I did not want to hint on what jutsu I had just used, mind you, and there was the off chance that the summoner of the impurely resurrected could hear or at least sense what the impurely resurrected did, heard, saw or talked about. Therefore, I did not even give the common courtesy of telling anyone what the jutsu was. Though thankfully every shinobi and kunoichi seemed to step around the gigantic muddy pool.

Gari did not seem concerned about the mud pool, however, and simply channelled chakra through his feet and ran across the field of wet dirt. How... unbecoming of me to think about that effective counter to the Earth Release, Captivating Mud technique. Well, I'd just have to find a way to get Gari down on the ground. I could just use Shinra Tensei, but that would, just like the Bansho Ten'in, not be good for humanity if my immediate hypothesis of the power hungry people was anything to go by.

I too charged my feet with chakra, but it was not for stepping on the mud. Dragon, Boar, Tiger, Monkey, Tiger, I inhaled sharply and charged the air I had inhaled with a lot of Lightning natured chakra, converting the air to lightning. I exhaled the air and out came dozens of bolts of lightning, all aimed specifically at the mud pool surrounding Gari, not Gari himself. The wet dirt got severely electrified as a result. Gari, however, was levitating slightly above the mud, so the result was wasted chakra. Dammit, so my hypothesis that channelling chakra through your feet only made you not sink into the depths of any liquid was not true. Thus, seeing the predicament I was in, the person who had taken up Kabuto's place in canon made Gari charge towards me. Oh goodie goo.

I jumped up with chakra, dodging Gari's explosive punches and kicks he had aimed at me, and I twisted in mid-air. I quickly channelled chakra through my feet and I landed on the dirty mud. I quickly threaded my way through some hand seals, but before I could finish the sequence of hand seals Gari turned around and punched me straight in my face, making it explode in a mess of paper. 'Explosion Release, Landmine Fist,' I thought at that moment. My body jumped backwards, which in any other situation would be hilarious. I mean, seeing a headless person jump backwards like a headless chicken would be quite entertaining. At least in my perspective. Attribute it to my recent blood-lust, if anything, please.

I got an idea, all of a sudden. Maybe it was an outrageous idea, but I found it plausible. After all, Gari's soul was still in the paper made body. Albeit he was not in complete control I could still influence him somehow. I could also attribute that specific ability to being taught to by some shinobi I knew of. Perhaps Mei? She was a very versatile shinobi, after all, and definitely would not put it past her to know such a technique. After all, she was the Mizukage. They are bound to be extremely powerful in as many aspects as possible. Thus I thought I could do something about the hold the person who had taken Kabuto's place had on Gari. Perhaps I could do the same with Pakura as well. It would be good in any case anyway. It was time that I used the technique after such a long time. Or it would be a long time, I wasn't entirely sure anymore.

As my eyes regenerated I looked deep into Gari's eyes. "I don't know if you know that I'm talking to you, Gari, but be prepared in any case, please," and then I imagined my immense chakra reserves detach a slight amount of it and go through my eyes to Gari's own, making our eyes gaze into each other's. I imagined the chakra running through our eyes and to our respective brains, thus contacting our minds. Yes, I was performing the mind walking technique on an impurely resurrected. I didn't know if it would work, but one could hope, right? Of course one could. What else would humans be if not hopeful? They would give in to despair, that is what.

* * *

><p>The grass I was laying on had a slightly soft texture, but the softness belied the age and the decrepit state it was in. Quite weird I say. I didn't think an Explosion Release wielder would have a grassy field as his mindscape. But I wasn't about to complain. Though I couldn't stop from taking in the sights of Gari's mindscape. It, as stated, was a grassy field with the grass being slightly wilting and brown or beige. However, it was a field without end. There were many trees scattered around the endless field of grass, tranquil, yet ugly at the same time. I even saw some squirrels running around, hell, I thought I saw a deer behind one of the dilapidated trees. Though said deer was very thin, looking as though it were dying. The squirrels, I noted, had a pale orange colour, yet it looked like they were very weak, like some disease had ridden them of any strength they had. Yet they still clambered up the trees in their mad search for food. I saw that the trees too were looking as if they were dying. I also saw some weeping willows felling their leaves, or whatever it was weeping willows had. I turned around and saw someone clad in black laying still in a decently sized crater, like the figure had been a meteorite or something. It was very intriguing for some reason, like it was calling out to me, pulling me to it. It was like I needed to know what had caused the crater. The feeling was incredibly strange, yet the more I intrigued it the more satisfied I became. I, however, played it off as an inconsistency of the Impure World Resurrection. It could be, in factual matter, any number of reasons, however I chose to ignore it for the time being, savouring the feeling of satisfaction. Therefore I advanced towards the shape in the crater.<p>

I approached the figure. And sure enough, it was Gari, his black spiked backwards like Kenpachi's from the famous Bleach series, though Gari's hair was in more spikes and had slightly thicker spikes. And the spikes themselves were not eleven in number. Slowly I closed the gap between me and the unconscious Gari. I tapped him with a toe of mine. After all, it could be that he was merely playing unconscious, and was in fact waiting for the perfect time to deliver a Landmine Fist on me. I did not want that. At all. So I stayed a fair distance away from him.

Once again I tapped his forehead with my geta sandals' tip. Thankfully, in my point of view at least, Gari opened his eyes slowly. He didn't attack me when he came to. In fact, his face twisted into a weird grimace that seemed to be a cross between smile and an expression of pain. In any other situation I would be entertained by it, but now was definitely not the time for such trivial matters. "So, this is the afterlife, eh? And you're an angel here to send me to hell, eh?" Gari managed to somehow squeeze out of his pain filled throat.

I was taken aback a little. Half of my mind expected Gari to just jump up and start attacking me due to the influence of the Impure World Resurrection. And the other half agreed. I leaned slightly forward, covering the sun, outlining me so Gari couldn't properly see my face. Though I had no idea it had that effect, I just wanted to make sure Gari didn't get any sunlight into his eyes so they could properly adjust to the light. I chuckled at Gari's words, however, "To answer your first question, no, this isn't the afterlife, Gari of from Iwa. This is merely your mindscape. To answer your second," I put my hands inside the opposite kimono sleeves, making me look slightly tranquil. "No. I'm not an angel, and if I were, I'd probably not be sending you to hell," I said. I mean, of course Gari would not go to hell. I didn't know what he had done, but I was pretty sure that since Zabuza was in the "Pure World" or whatever the afterlife was called, Gari wouldn't need to be sent to the unforgiving hell.

However, Gari laughed quite mockingly, closing his eyes and throwing his head back in laughter. "Ha! You don't know what I've done to deserve having death knocking on my door!" he expressed mirthfully, smiling widely as he did.

I was taken a little aback. What could Gari have done to deserve going to hell? There could actually be many things, actually. He could have tortured someone to the point where the victim begged for death's release. He could have murdered someone completely innocent for all charges, such as a baby, for example. In my eyes a newborn baby is the most innocent creature of all things alive, completely pure as it is. However, the longer they live the less pure they become, thus they in the end are not so innocent any longer. He could have abused a child, something I consider as vile and wretched as rape. Child abuse has been, was, is and will be as calamitous and terrible as rape for me. There was also the possibility that Gari had raped someone. If so, then I would completely understand Gari's want to go to hell. I would also understand it if Gari had abused a child, but anything else, short of killing a newborn child or rape, I would not understand why he would be so concerned about whether or not he would arrive in hell. I would fully understand.

I decided to ask him about it. I figured it to be the most beneficial way to receive the answer. "So," I drawled, "What have you done to be so obsessed with going to hell, Gari-san?" I asked politely. I had figured that being polite would be the best way to appeal to the Explosion Release wielder's best interests and good side. If said Explosion Release wielder had a good side, that is. But he had to have one. He thought that what he did was terrible, so that had to count for something, right? Right? Of course.

Gari laughed loudly yet again, "Ha ha ha! You won't be so amicable if you knew what I have done!" Gari shouted at me, arms splayed wide as he sat up to represent the seriousness of the situation. Though I would just look at him as if he was a crazy person. I mean, who would splay their arms about to display seriousness? I sure as heck would not do that. I consider it stupid, yes yes.

I crossed my arms in front of my chest, "Alright, I'll bite. What have you done, Gari-san, that makes you deserve hell?" I asked courteously. There were the stated possibilities of either rape, child abuse, or murder of a newborn, but murder of an adult I didn't consider as a crime worthy of punishment of death. More like lifetime imprisonment instead. Or torture until the murderer has had enough. Or something. I don't really know...

Gari began to laugh some more. He sure laughs a lot, that man, does he not? But I swear his eyes began to tear up a little and that his eyes began to leak tears. I didn't properly see because Gari stood up – albeit a little shakily – and turned around a full one-eighty, blocking his face from my view. "I-I-" he stammered out, "I have done terrible things," he said, "Terrible, but great," he continued to stutter, "But the worst thing I have ever done-" then he began to wipe his face of his tears as he cried. I just looked on with a blank face. However I did feel sadness for the man, and uncrossed my arms only to put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Gari shrieked out and punched the hand away, hard. "Don't touch me! Eh?" he yelled, still not entirely facing me. But I caught a glimpse of his face. It was ridden with tears, not a single speck of his cheeks untouched by the watery liquid. Whatever Gari had done, it must have been terrible and must have broken him completely. I resigned myself to just stand behind him in silent comfort and companionship, and put my hands once again in the opposite sleeve.

"She was so beautiful! I couldn't stop it," Gari whispered lowly.

That threw me into the chamber which held all secrets. I understood what Gari had done now. Either he had raped someone at least mildly attractive or he had abused a child that he considered 'beautiful', which is common for parents to think of their children. I took a slight step forward and said "What have you done, Gari-san?" slowly in support of Gari's fragile mental state.

Gari quickly turned around and grabbed hold of the hem of my kimono. Sure enough his cheeks _were_ stricken with tears, and still not letting up one bit. He then continued to shout, "I raped the granddaughter of the Tsuchikage, Kurotsuchi! And she was just seven years old!" Then he just broke down in front of me, kneeling on the ground as he let loose a new torrent of tears and

However, I did not see that he had broken down. I did not see the tears that hit my socks, nor that Gari began to put his forehead on the ground after the he saw that he was staining my tabi socks. I did not care about my socks at the moment. I was simply shocked at Gari's statement.

He had not only raped someone, he had raped Kurotsuchi, the daughter of Kitsuchi, who was probably the son of the Tsuchikage, Onoki. If Kitsuchi was not the son of the Tsuchikage, then he was the husband of the daughter of the Tsuchikage, whose name I haven't really heard of. And not only had Gari raped someone, specifically Kurotsuchi, but he had raped her when she was but seven years old! That's _both_ child abuse _and_ rape. That is the just the worst of the worst! Gari truly did deserve death knocking on his door. He truly deserved the lowest pits of hell.

I frowned deeply while looking down on Gari's weeping form. He really didn't even deserve to cry of his sin. I wanted so badly to hate him, to loathe him, to make sure that he would never be impurely resurrected ever again. And make sure that he would properly suffer from the sins he had committed.

In fact, it was so bad I was shaking, my heart was pounding against my chest rapidly in anger, my rage being an almost literal wave that the dam known as self-control could not totally handle. Consequently, I was shaking something fiercely. I detested rapists. I had something personal against them! I found it disgusting! And to top it all off, Kurotsuchi was only seven years old! She was not even supposed to know what sexual intercourse was. Damn Gari for doing something so vile, so wretched, so terrible, so, so... inexplicably unpleasantly revolting!

"Gari," I decided to not add a suffix to Gari's name, to insult him subtly, "I have decided that I am an angel, sent here to bring you to hell," I said, shaking with righteous anger.

Gari clambered up my form, his tears not curbing my wrath at all. "Yes," he pleaded, "Yes, please, send me to where I deserve! Please!"

I nodded grimly. At least there is one child abuser and rapist – at the same time, even – who was wanting proper judgement. I put a hand on his head and just like that, Gari smiled and died without a sound being emitted. Not even from his body hitting the ground. Not even from the paper that dissolved into nothingness, revealing a dead corpse for all to see. Now Gari could be brutally tortured in hell, something I am sure the devil, if he had any common sense, would gladly do.

* * *

><p>I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Gari had gotten what he had deserved. And I didn't consume Gari's knowledge, as is the Human Path's ability.<p>

Now it was time to make sure Pakura was down for the count.

I looked around and saw that some shinobi were looking at me curiously. Why in the world would they do that? I looked down on myself. Nope, I still had all my clothes on. That nightmare didn't come to be. Thank goodness. But my eyes fell on a corpse that lay in a pile of a paper-like substance. Oh... so that's what the shinobi were staring at strangely. Well, at least they didn't look at _me_ specifically. I did use the Human Path's ability of removing souls _inside_ Gari's mindscape, so the shinobi shouldn't really know about my Rinnegan. Unless it wasn't under a genjutsu to begin with. Well, whatever. I'd rather not even use it as much anyway, just because it was a little bit more fun dragging out the battles I was in. So instead I merely shrugged lightly and searched for Pakura. Which didn't take long, as Kakashi suddenly leaped backwards into the field of which the Allied Shinobi Forces had cleared in favour of not getting in between me and the contemptible Gari. Following Kakashi was a woman who had her hair in a tight bun. I immediately identified her as the Scorch Release wielder, Pakura. Kakashi looked back to me and exclaimed, "Takuma-san, a little help here would be greatly appreciated!" he yelled. He had his Sharingan uncovered and had only his Sharingan eye opened, indicating that, yes, he was very serious about the battle. He had a very haggard look on him, which said that Pakura was without a doubt a devastatingly efficient ninja.

I nodded at Kakashi and yelled back at him, "Sure thing!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Don't expect chapters regularly anymore. While I will update at least once a week, I will not update, say, every Thursday or something like that.

But anyway, thank you for reviewing! You are making me a happy person when your reviews reach me! ^^


	32. Mountains' Graveyard

I ran towards where Kakashi was standing. Once I arrived I saw Pakura scorching someone to death. Well, if Pakura was scorching someone so heavily then thank goodness it was some nondescript shinobi or kunoichi instead of, say, Guy or Kakashi. That would make the story much less interesting, because Kakashi is very important to the canon story. Not that my arrival hadn't fucked it up too much anyway, you know? What could have possibly happened while I was dead? I wonder. But I truly hope that Naruto had been able to get some satisfying fights during the time between my death and my impure resurrection. Damn the Second Hokage for creating such a vile jutsu. It was despicable, revolting, even. But alas, I didn't have to think about it for the time being. There were more pressing matters to attend to first. Like Pakura scorching shinobi and kunoichi. That was a serious matter that needed immediate attention.

"Where's the Akatsuki base, Takuma-san?" Kakashi had his Sharingan eye wide open, looking directly at the scorching Pakura. I noticed that he was staring at her legs. Oh well, he was a pervert anyway. Didn't really surprise me that much. "And hurry! The quicker you tell me the quicker we get to tell headquarters!" he added.

I sighed, "Tell your commanders that the Akatsuki base is in the Mountains' Graveyard directly north of Oto," I continued when I saw Kakashi preparing to leap to some destination. "And before you go," Kakashi paused in his preparation to jump, "Know that Madara Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi are there. It will be an extremely tough battle, and that-"

Kakashi, rudely enough, interrupted me, "I know what Madara is capable of. You told us yourself," he said.

I was taken slightly aback. How could I have told them about Madara's abilities when I had been dead? Unless my subconsciousness was responsible, I didn't really see how that was possible. Think, Shinji, think. What could have made me talk while I was dead? What could have made me write a message to them which contained the abilities of Madara Uchiha?

Why of course! The scroll I had written and edited countless times, especially when the party I was in found Fu. Then I had to buy an entirely new scroll after that. The scroll contained information about the attained and naturally obtained abilities and capabilities of each Akatsuki member, preparing Gaara for the invasion by both Sasori and Deidara, but mainly Deidara, as well as stating the dangers of Gaara _not_ being captured. Preparing Sakura and Chiyo against Sasori and describing the number of puppets he had in his disposal – about a hundred and fifty, in total. Preparing Might Guy, Tenten, Neji and Rock Lee for the chakra beast and Samehada wielder, Kisame Hoshigaki. Preparing Shikamaru, Kakashi, Ino and Chouji for Hidan and Kakuzu. Preparing Naruto and Kakashi, as well as the rest of Konoha for the invasion of Pain. Though to be frank, I hoped that the storyline wouldn't be messed up _too_ much by my interference. Otherwise my foreknowledge would be to waste. I didn't want that. There were too many variables for the future, or what would be now considered as past, unless I would somehow travel back in time, which would then make the past the future, but still maintaining my past as the past, I believe. Oh well, who cared anyway? The future was the future, the past was the past, and there was only one way of manipulating time, and that is to slow it down, either to the point where everything is in slow-motion or is completely stopped.

Kakashi nodded gravely and jumped away to some blonde-haired individual, whose hair was done into a high ponytail. He was probably a Yamanaka from the looks of it, what with the dirty-blonde hair done into a high ponytail as well as the solid eyes. Kakashi said something to the Yamanaka. The Yamanaka nodded and commenced to put one of his hands into something reminiscent of the Ram hand seal, but with only a single hand. After making the single hand seal the Yamanaka put his other hand on Kakashi's head. He was probably transmitting Kakashi's foremost thoughts to whomsoever it was that received the various thought messages. It was probably Inoichi, Ino's father, who received these messages. But still, it was not necessary for me to think about any such things at that moment, no. What was important was that the Allied Shinobi Forces' headquarters got the information about the Akatsuki base.

I shifted my attention to Pakura, who coincidentally was scorching some random nondescript shinobi. I sighed. This would be so troublesome, the battle that would be commencing. I didn't want to use Susanoo for the obvious reason of a sense of heightened blood-lust. In fact, I did not want to use any Mangekyo Sharingan powers, for the same reason as the Susanoo. It would increase my blood-lust dramatically. Not that it was significant to begin with or anything, I just didn't mind blood all that much... or at least I thought so.

Anyway, I enhanced my legs with some chakra, which still made me wonder; how was it I could enhance my legs with chakra when what I should enhance – the muscles in the legs, along with the nerves and the bones as to not overload and destroy them – was an empty shell of papery articles? Oh well, I was sure I could worry about it at a later date, because right now, my problem was in the form of a bun-haired woman by the name of Pakura from Suna.

I jumped high up in the air, intent on landing directly next to Pakura. Pakura saw this and dodged properly by skidding along the ground and sending a scorching hot ball of fire at me. Despite myself I believed that since I had the Rinnegan I could use many of the bloodlines that combined the elements. At least, that was my hypothesis. So I immediately, and quite instinctively, poured chakra in front of me and turned that chakra into both Water natured chakra and Wind natured chakra, creating a layer of thick ice between both me and the scorching ball of fire. Thankfully enough the ice, while Wind and Water chakra was being pumped into it, put up a marvellous resistance to the fireball, but still created a thick steamy mist from the point of contact between the ice and the now dead fireball. My plan worked! Or rather, my hypothesis was correct. The Rinnegan grants at least me all the chakra natured based bloodlines. Which was something I definitely would _not_ complain about, no, definitely not.

I landed heavily on the ground, and looked forward to see Pakura charging at me with three balls of fiery substances floating behind her. Pakura threw a hand at me, while still being a distance away, and one of the scorching balls of fire sent itself towards me with great speed. I see, so Pakura required movement to send those scorch fireballs at me, huh? I just needed to put some sort of restraint on her then; that would mean that Pakura couldn't use that nasty little fireball to any effect if my hypothesis would be correct. And usually they are.

A thought hit me at the moment I jumped and twisted in the air to dodge the fireball of the Scorch Release bloodline. What if I could do the same thing as I did to Gari in his inner world? As in go into Pakura's inner world and extract her soul from within her mindscape. It was a possibility that seemed very probable; in fact, I would bet that it would be a preferred method. But people would without a doubt question why I was able to make both Pakura and Gari disappear before their very eyes, revealing the corpses they had inhabited while impurely resurrected.

But no, I should rather not do that, I thought as I began to thread my way through a new set of hand seals while dodging and twisting past many Scorch Release made fireballs. No, I could definitely not have the Allied Shinobi Forces' commanders question my loyalty to the living and to the peace between wars. I got nicked by one of the fireballs as I twisted past two of the damnable fireballs, burning a little of my kimono. Dammit, I should get some fire resistant kimonos once I'm done with this. Oh wait... once I was done with this I wouldn't be able to stay at the Naruto universe. I'd be dead. Oh well, whatever gets peace going, right?

The last four hand seals I made were Horse, Rat, Snake and then Dragon. I inhaled air deeply into my lungs, flooded said air with Earth chakra. Now I didn't want to spit out a regular pile of sticky mud, or a swamp, no. I wanted to completely encase Pakura in a shell of earthen muddy substance. I spat out a large bullet of mud, leaving a trail of smoke the shape of a cone behind it as it broke the sound barrier, the sound booming across the field and taking much air with it as it raced past many of the startled shinobi who probably got their eardrums ruptured from the sound. And it was definitely a magnificently loud sound, never had I heard anything like it before as loud as it was. Thankfully I was impurely resurrected so my eardrums got rejuvenated within a second. Such an insignificant damage was not of concern to me anyway.

The "Earth Release, Mud Dragon Bullet!" slammed into Pakura, who even if she wanted to dodge, couldn't even hope to do so. Since the Mud Dragon Bullet was travelling faster than the speed of sound it hit Pakura and took her with it as it travelled to a conveniently located boulder that was as large as two men standing on their shoulders and as wide as five men standing shoulder to shoulder. Once Pakura and the Mud Dragon Bullet hit the large hunk of rock it broke and the Mud Dragon Bullet drastically decreased its speed. Once it was travelling as fast as a normal Dragon Bullet it hit the ground after a quick ascent and descent, with Pakura at its nose.

The Allied Shinobi Forces around stared in shock at the damage done by my Mud Dragon Bullet. It was devastating, as the boulder not only was really large, but also really thick, as thick as one of those trucks carrying oil was long. I sighed in disappointment. "What the hell are you waiting for?" I shouted to the nearest person who was holding a ridiculously large scroll. "Seal her up!" after those 'wise' words said person snapped to attention and drew on the seal and proceeded to run towards the downed Pakura who was slowly regenerating her wounds if the paper that was slowly centering around Pakura was any indication. Other seals personnel were rushing towards Pakura and sealing her up; as was their job.

I sighed in relief. Finally this skirmish was over. Now I didn't have to think about the impurely resurrected right then and there. I let my guard down, not needing it any longer. It was foolish, I know, since it was drilled into me since the very beginning of my entry to the Naruto universe that letting your guard down was stupid beyond comprehension – I had had to have my guard up even while I was sleeping or was sleepy as fuck or even sick during Mei's training period – but could you really blame me? I was mentally exhausted, so many things happening at once, it was tiring; it was really, really tiring.

I rubbed my genjutsu covered Rinnegan eyes in sudden exhaustion. Dammit, don't tell me that that Mud Dragon Bullet was chakra consuming! Because if it was I would be pissed. I mean, I had tailed beast level chakra, there was no way I would be chakra exhausted! So instead, I attributed it to the Impure World Resurrection instead. Yes, it was much more likely, actually. It could be that the Impure World Resurrection was actually _not_ an invulnerable shell of papery substance. It could also be that whomever took Kabuto's place was stopping the technique, albeit quite slowly, if the slow exhaustion was anything to go by.

All of a sudden I felt rejuvenated, as if I had better control over my body and still going strong. It was strange, actually. What also happened was that my blood-lust sky-rocketed through the proverbial roof. I wanted blood. And if I wanted blood, I'd get it. No matter the cost. Hell, I didn't care where the blood came from! It could even come from me, but that I couldn't understand how, because I was impurely resurrected after all.

I shook my head and clenched my hands into fists. Dammit! Must not loose control! Must not loose control! Steady, Shinji Takuma, steady. Don't loose control now...

But the _blood_, it would be so delicious to consume, to see, to splatter all around the area! Why should I not slaughter the shinobi and the kunoichi? They had without a doubt done something terrible to warrant their deaths, right? Like murder, child abuse maybe? Or perhaps rape? I really wanted to kill someone, and there were people around me, so why should I _not_ kill them, huh? Why?

Because talking to yourself is a sign of insanity!

I quickly banished my blood-thirsty thoughts by a violent shake of the head. I couldn't dismiss my blood-thirsty side, but that didn't mean I couldn't at least suppress it. I wanted – no, _needed_ – to think different thoughts, thoughts that did not concern blood, like... like... Naruto! Where was Naruto? For that matter what was his status anyway? Had he learned the Kyuubi Chakra Mode yet? Or had I changed the storyline so drastically that he didn't even learn that? I hoped that he did, otherwise the canon storyline would be totally different, and Naruto would be weaker than what he requires. He really needs that Chakra Mode, otherwise he won't be able to defeat Nagato or the various White Zetsu that want to capture him. It would be totally difficult to distinguish the White Zetsu from the regular shinobi and kunoichi-

Oh right! I had included that information about White Zetsu in my scroll, so that meant that the Allied Shinobi Forces knew of White Zetsu's powers. Or at least I hoped they knew of it. I also hoped that I had written White Zetsu's abilities in the scroll at all. There was the possibility that I hadn't written it down at all. If that were the matter then I, as well as the Allied Shinobi Forces, would be fucked as hell.

I looked around for Kakashi, and sure enough he was approaching me slowly, his forehead protector covering his left eye, indicating that he was not going to go to battle against me. I had, after all, proved that I was on their side in this conflict. Why shouldn't I be? I mean, there was the possibility of me being in league with Madara Uchiha, but I detested the man for not being as forgiving as the Senju, or as Naruto. I mean, sure, his own clan had disowned him, but that didn't warrant hatred for all of Konoha, did it? No! It did not! Madara was a short-sighted person, in some aspects at least. I mean, yeah, he was a beast at planning and that stuff, but socially, he was very short-sighted, yes, very much so.

"Well, that was entertaining," Kakashi murmured loud enough for me to hear. Kakashi stood now a few feet away from me, putting his hands in his pockets and looking like he should. Perpetually bored. I was, of course, chuckling slightly at Kakashi's words and bored antics.

"Well, thank you for the compliment, Kakashi Hatake," I mock bowed a little. Then I got serious, all sombre and grave. "There are a few things I need to ask, Kakashi Hatake-san," I asked pensively. Kakashi motioned lazily with a hand for me to continue. "First question," I said, "Where is Naruto?"

However it wasn't Kakashi who answered that question. Instead I heard a little bit of a shuffle behind me which made me turn around. There stood Fu, looking quite giddy all of a sudden, and said, "Well, Takuma-sensei, he's one of the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces."

…

_What_?

The new information I heard surprised me so much that my jaw dropped from its very hinges, and would have brought some pain – seeing as it was a dislocated jaw and all – had I not been impurely resurrected. He is one of the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces? What the hell has happened while I was away and deceased? How could Naruto possibly be a leader of the Alliance when it was supposed to be Tsunade Senju, the Hokage of Konoha, A, the Raikage of Kumo, Onoki, the Tsuchikage of Iwa, Mei Terumi, the Mizukage of Kiri, and Gaara, the Kazekage of Suna, that were the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces? Could it be that Naruto is a leader of one of the squadrons of the Allied Forces? Or could it be that he was one of the leaders of the divisions? What could it possibly be that would make him leader of the Allied Forces? I would think that he would be located inside the giant Turtle Island thing, not in out in the open for Madara Uchiha to catch! Well, the best way to obtain that bit of information would be to ask about why Naruto was a leader. After all, why would I be forcing it out of the throats of the various shinobi who knew about Naruto's status?

I scratched the back of my head in confusion, "So," I drawled, staring wide-eyed at Fu, who was blushing slightly from the stare, but otherwise smiling without a concern for the world. I was back from the dead – literally – so why wouldn't Fu be happy? "What's been going on while I've been gone, Fu-chan?" I said.

Fu's blush deepened slightly at the affectionate suffix, but she avidly nodded and proceeded to step closer to me, seeing as we were a bit of a distance away from each other. As in three metres or so. She began explaining to me what had happened while I was dead in the world of Naruto, "While you were," she hesitated, "... dead," she looked nervously up to me, but all she got was a motion for her to continue from me, along with a 'Yes?' She nodded in the affirmative and continued her explanation, "Naruto-kun, Mitarashi-san, and I-"

I interrupted her, shaking my hands madly in front of my face, "Wait just a second, Fu-chan!" Then I pointed an accusing finger at her, but my face remained soft, "Are you saying Anko was alive? She told me she was dying! If she were alive and well, then why would she lie to me?"

Fu nodded, "Yes, she told me that she had told you that she was dying," Fu put her arms behind her in a shying gesture, "But what she intended was to break ties with you. She was nervous about the predicament she was in," she finished, but her smiling face took a turn for the worse, going melancholic. Now what did Fu mean by predicament? What kind of 'predicament' could Anko be in that I couldn't have a helping hand in? And why was Fu all of a sudden getting sad-faced? Fu saw the confused expression I had, and decided to elaborate, "She was pregnant, with your child."

"Oh..." I responded dumbly.

…

Why would surprises always come when least expected? First I find out that Naruto is one of the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces, for some reason I didn't know at the time, and now I discovered that my Anko was pregnant with my child. Not that I expected her to be pregnant with any other's child. So when I saw Anko when I was dying wasn't just some hallucination? And neither was it any influence of my mind that she was a little round on the belly? Well, it was good to know that Anko was still alive, yeah?

Then the surprise really reared its, in this case, pretty head to me. Anko Mitarashi, _my_ dear Anko-chan, had been pregnant? Why in the world would she hide something like that from me? I didn't know, and to be absolutely honest, I didn't care much. She was alive. Anko Mitarashi, the dango lover of all dango lovers, was alive. Anko-chan was alive. It was good to know...

But why would she hide it from me? Well, as stated before, I didn't honestly care. She was alive and I was happy for it.

Slowly a genuine smile spread across my papery lips. "It's good to know that Anko-chan is still alive," I said, with authentic happiness.

Wait a minute. If Anko was still alive, then how was her current status? In canon, she was captured by Kabuto. It was in order to consume Orochimaru's chakra so that his control over the Impure World Resurrection was complete. Or at least better than before. It was something along those lines. That's why Kabuto would probably have someone give chase to my Anko. _My _Anko! Anko was not safe! I needed to know if she was alright! I needed to know immediately!

I opened my eyes and looked intensely at Fu. "Where is Anko-chan, Fu-chan?" I demanded of her, yet being careful to not sound too forceful. Fu was, after all, quite a bit delicate. However, despite the harshness of war she was still determined to protect her friends, namely Naruto, without a doubt. Admirable, doubtless, and it was something that would doubtlessly be her saving grace.

Fu was startled, but managed to answer as the rest of the shinobi around us began packing and retreating back into the forest. The sun was beginning to show its last glimmers, which reminded me that I had to warn everyone about the incoming flood of White Zetsu in the form of allied shinobi. But I could warn them about it later. Right now it was more important for me to know about Anko's state of mind and location rather than warning some nondescript shinobi about White Zetsu. "She's alright. She's in Konoha on maternity leave along with Kurenai-sensei. Why are you asking, Takuma-sensei?" she finished. I idly noted that she didn't once stammer at all.

I turned to Kakashi who was looking back and forth between both me – probably in cautiousness. I was, after all, an impurely resurrected person – and his subordinates. "Kakashi!" I yelled to him. He turned towards me after issuing an order to some random shinobi that asked him a random general question about where he was needed or something equally as uninteresting.

Kakashi approached me with his hands in his pockets. "Hmm?" he hummed lazily in response.

"Get someone to contact Konoha! I want to know if Anko-chan is in Konoha! She could be in grave danger! Now!" I yelled at him fiercely.

Kakashi saw the intense look I had, one that could not be lying at all. I didn't lie anyway, so there was no need to see if I could be trusted or not. Anko was probably already in the person who had taken Kabuto's place's clutches, and if she was... well, let's just say that it won't be good for whomever had taken Kabuto's place, let's just say that, yeah?

Kakashi nodded grimly. "Alright," with that he turned around and barked a command to a blonde-haired individual, "Yamanaka, get over here," he shouted lazily. I don't know how he pulled it off, but he did. Shouting lazily, I mean come on... wait, I shouldn't be thinking about such things. Anko was maybe in danger, and I needed to know immediately. Or else I'd be in deep, deep trouble if Anko ever found out that I was thinking about something else other than her well-being. I think. In fact, I hope she'd kick my ass, if only to prove that she was alive and well.

Once again the Yamanaka put a hand Kakashi's head, with his other hand in half a Ram hand seal. Kakashi closed his eyes in order to properly transmit his foremost thoughts to headquarters' communication division. After a while, in nervous anticipation, Kakashi finally got up from his kneeling position on the ground and turned solemnly towards me. I took an anxious step forwards. "What did they say, Hatake-san?" I asked.

Kakashi swallowed some excess saliva, "They say that Mitarashi-san and her child have been kidnapped. They don't know who did it," he looked glumly, looking at his feet all of a sudden.

No.

No!

No, fucking _no_!

My Anko-chan isn't kidnapped by someone unknown! It has to be someone they know about! It has to be!

I looked north-west, towards the sea, towards the land of which the Mountains' Graveyard was in, towards the Mountains' Graveyard itself. She was there. She had to be. She was doubtlessly there. I was going to rescue her. And our child. I was going to be the one who killed the one who resurrected all those famous people that were impurely resurrected. I would kill the bastard, and make him or her pay dearly for getting Anko-chan and my child kidnapped. And while I was at it, I would decimate Madara Uchiha if I ever found him. I would kill them all.

And with that I used an overcharged shunshin to close the distance

* * *

><p>I appeared next to trees. In front of me was a deep chasm, with overly large skeletons of dragon-like characteristics. Yes, I was indeed in the Mountains' Graveyard.<p>

I heard a hissing sound from behind me. I turned around a full one eighty and saw _him_. That detestable man. Yet I couldn't help but wonder; how did he survive?

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I have just recently set up a poll on my userpage. If you would so kindly as to vote, it would be very much appreciated! :D


	33. A Father's Dilemma

The glowing moon hung high in the night sky, illuminating the surrounding area with silver moonlight as I stood on the branch of a tree, my geta sandals making a negligible sound as they made contact with the wooden branch. The wind was practically non-existent, but still managing to make my white kimono flutter slightly. The green leaves rustled insignificantly as well from the small wind. In front of me, on the small but significant clearing in front of me were quite a few symbols written in kanji, with a still, and clearly female, person with their neck exposed to the cool air lying on the array of seals completely still. There was a white snake holding another much smaller person with a tight grip. So tight, in fact, that if you were close to them you would probably hear the pale white bones creaking from the strain put on them by the white snake. The child, for it was obvious the small person was just that, was without a doubt unconscious, as it did not move. At all.

I could hear a faint whimpering from the captured woman on the array of complicated seals, and I quickly channelled chakra to my ears to enhance its sense so that I could hear what the woman had to say, as well as confirm my suspicions on who it was, "Please, just take me. It's me you want, Kabuto. Let my kid go. Please," the female figure pleaded to the third person whose white snake was coming from under the third person's overly large and black cloak. The cloak reminded me of a black snake, with some kind of white 'eye-liner', you could say. The inverse of what the snake creeping out of the crouching man's cloak was.

The man chuckled ominously, just like a certain snake Sannin I know of, and adjusted his round glasses up the bridge of his nose, "There is something you must know, Anko Mitarashi. I will not let the child go," the snake-like man with purple markings, much like those of Orochimaru's, around his eyes said mirthfully. Anko, _my_ Anko-chan, was quiet after that, and the child, who I was pretty sure was mine and Anko's, had its eyes completely closed.

I was filled with rage at the moment. How _dare_ Kabuto even _think_ of touching my Anko-chan, even go as far as to kidnap our child? How dare he? I will make sure that he will pay, or my name was not Shinji Takuma, the name I had been living with for over three years! The nerve of the snake-like man, no, monster! Though I assume that there could be some light on the situation. My child and Anko were still alive, although their precious, to me at least, well-being could be heavily debated.

Kabuto turned around and began to go towards the hanging child. He moved his white and bony hand up towards the child's head. Oh, if he went for a touch on _my_ child then I'd punch him straight through the chest! Now there's an idea...

In fact, I think I'll use that idea. It's a pleasant option, and it won't traumatize my child, seeing as it was unconscious and all. I was about to use a sealless shunshin and depend on the power the Asura Path was giving me, but I was startled by a sound of a sucking noise right next to me. I turned to look at the vortex illuminated by the glimmering moonlight, and forth stepped a white mask and two mismatched eyes. One of them an activated red Sharingan, the other the greyish purple Rinnegan.

Standing on a branch to my right was Madara Uchiha. Madara just entered the playing field, and he would without a doubt be wanting blood. Specifically my blood. Wait... I was immortal! So there was no way that he would be able to kill me. Unless, of course, the thin and clad in black Kabuto Yakushi dispelled the wretched Impure World Resurrection with the Dog, Horse, Tiger sequence of hand seals. I hoped that Kabuto wouldn't use that sequence, at least not until I managed to kill off Madara. But of course, how else would Kabuto manage to make me go away? There were the other methods, such as giving me a feeling of closure, or sealing me up. But apparently they, as in Madara and Kabuto, didn't have any sealing equipment meant to seal off any impurely resurrected people.

Madara was standing still, the both of us sizing up the other. Kabuto turned around to face us, and began observing both me and Madara with a creepy fascination displayed clearly on his face. He didn't expect me to arrive so soon, but neither did he expect Anko and I to find each other's souls in the other and then create an offspring together, now did he?

Finally, after what seemed to be hours of a breathless stare-off, Madara chuckled menacingly, "Well, I didn't think to see you here, Shinji Takuma. I half expected you to be at Naruto's side by now, shouting a congratulations at him from the top of your lungs for his ascension to Hokage status and his marriage to one Hinata Hyuuga. Not here, preparing for a battle," he finished.

I widened my eyes imperceptibly in surprise. Naruto was Hokage now? What for? How come? Why was Naruto Hokage? And he was married to Hinata? What had been happening while I was gone from this world? Seriously, there had been far too many things for me to keep properly track of while I was gone! Not that I was complaining or anything. In fact, I could see why Madara was suggesting that I was at Naruto's wedded side and congratulate him for both his marriage to Hinata Hyuuga and his promotion to Hokage. It was significant for his dream, that was for sure. And it also explained to me why he was one of the leaders of the Allied Shinobi Forces. But alas, it was all not something I should think about currently. I should think about rescuing both _my _child – I still can't get over the fact that I had a child with Anko-chan – and Anko. If I can't do that then I had absolutely nothing to live for any longer. So I had to give it my all, for it was either that or nothing. That's my ninja way! Or something.

Madara Uchiha crossed his arms in front of his chest and began to glare at me with his stolen eyes. "Though I have to thank you, I suppose. If it weren't for you I wouldn't have my well deserved Rinnegan eye. So a thank you is in order," Madara gave me a slight mock bow, all the while I glared heavily at him, not even thinking of returning his oh so polite bow.

But Madara had taken one of my Rinnegan eyes? I thought that he was supposed to take Nagato's Rinnegan eyes, not mine. But let's say that he did take my own Rinnegan eyes. To be honest, it didn't surprise me that much. He was a greedy person, willing to go through everything to get what he wanted. He had without a doubt heard about my Rinnegan eyes through some random drunk rebel who had participated in the Bloodline Civil War in Water Country or some other means. But if Nagato's Rinnegan eyes were still where they rightfully should be, then that would mean that Konan was still alive, right? But if that were the case, then Ame was in the Allied Shinobi Forces' ranks, right? Since Konan vowed to defend and stand under Naruto, that would mean that Ame was under the jurisdiction of Konan's leadership. Or so I hoped. O liked Konan. She was one of my favourite characters of the enormous cast of Naruto characters, Naruto being my most favourite and all.

"My my, what's with that glare, Takuma-san?" Kabuto chuckled good-naturedly, though I did not take it as such. I mean, why should I? This was Kabuto, the butt fellow of Orochimaru. There was no way I would be on friendly terms with him at all, ever. And that was final. Besides, I was pretty sure no one would be complaining about my lack of respect towards said snake-like _thing_, for I simply refuse to call _him_ a man, or a person, for that matter.

I shifted my stare that promised a long time of torture to whomever they landed on at Kabuto, who had tightened his snake's hold on _my_ child. Anko whimpered, but said nothing as she continued to stare at me with disbelieving eyes. After all, just until recently that day, I had been a dead man. So yes, she was surprised over the fact that I was alive, or sort of alive. Since she couldn't move she couldn't jump up and hug me to death before slaying whomsoever got in the way of her hug of death of hers on me. Though I would have to tell her I didn't have any sense of touch. That was just a downer, but at least I could see and hear. Those are the most important senses, at least to me they are. "The punishment of kidnapping _my_ child and _my_ Anko-chan is _death_," I grumbled malevolently. I did _not_ want _anyone_ to even _think_ of attacking or kidnapping my child or any future children or my Anko-chan.

Madara chuckled and uncrossed his arms. I saw this through my peripheral vision, and turned my gaze to him. As he began to talk I could see that he was preparing for a battle, his shoulders tensing slightly, his legs coiling for a strike. But I knew his weakness. I knew that he could only last for five minutes with his intangibility. I knew that he had to touch someone or something in order to transport them to his own personal dimension or some shit like that. I knew his weaknesses. And I intended to exhaust him to the point of death. And then force him to use Izanagi, just to make him die again. I would thoroughly enjoy it. "Oh really? Then how come we aren't-"

But before he could finish his taunting sentence he was stabbed through his stomach. Or it would have been a proper stab, had he not seen it with his Sharingan and properly dematerialized into nothing but light particles, or whatever light was. I wasn't about to go into a deep monologue about what light was, it was useless for my goals right then and there. I had put my arm through his now dematerialized stomach, would have been stabbing him through his abdomen and skin tissue, muscle tissue and whatnot, had he been properly materialized. But he was not.

Madara chuckled once again. He seems to like doing that. "Anxious to fight, are you?" he said. He continued, despite my wishes to never hear his voice ever again because of the sorrow he had been responsible for, for having the audacity to kill Naruto's parents, or at least being the responsible one, "If you would so kindly as to remove your arm, I'd be happy to comply to your wishes," he said with malign intent.

However, I did no such thing. I did not intend to remove my arm from his stomach area for five minutes straight. Instead, I looked up at him and smirked. "Intangibility. What a useful ability. However, it won't work when I know its weakness, will it?" I said as my smirk widened to a full blown smile.

Madara's eyes widened in surprise, just as mine had at the news of Naruto's bump to becoming Hokage and his marriage to Hinata. Then Madara began to glare at me, something I expect he will do for quite a while now. "Oh, and what are my so called weakness in my aptitude to become intangible?" he asked, but it was more like demand, though, what with his evil tone of voice and all.

I smiled widely at him, a murderous smile, "Five minutes," Madara recoiled slightly in shock, but still my arm firmly remained in his stomach, or where it would be, "Five minutes is the amount of time you can remain intangible. Also, in order to use that nifty little jutsu of yours that sucks people into your own, weird, dimension, you need to touch them," and then my smile turned upside down into a frown. "Kabuto," I called to said _person_. I saw the white haired snake-like _thing_ raise an eyebrow from the corner of my eye as I did not divert my gaze to him. "If you do not release Anko-chan and my child, I will kill you, as well as Madara here," I said determinedly. And I would without a shadow of a doubt follow on to that threat. Oh yes.

Kabuto and Madara both chuckled, with Madara turning his head to face Kabuto, who was also looking at Madara. Then the both of them began laughing mockingly at me. At _me_! I would kill the both of them for it anyway.

Some of the dots on the checkered map moved a little as Kabuto stood up from his crouch and cracked his neck a little. It was probably to intimidate me or something equally as fascinatingly inefficient. Kabuto raised his heads all the while chuckling like some sort of deranged criminal. But in all intents and purposes, he was a deranged criminal.

Suddenly I sensed six huge chakra signatures appear, three of which were in my immediate line of sight, and three others grouped together surrounding Anko-chan. Or at least their chakra signatures were huge _in comparison_ to most others. So they either had to be selectively bred for war, had naturally large chakra capacities or they were Jinchuuriki. It was most likely the latter of the three possible options. But why were there six signatures? Shouldn't Killer B still be alive? Fu was still alive, that was for sure. So it couldn't be Fu. Was it Killer B then? I hoped not, for he was a rather cool guy, I had to say. Well, not so much say as in think.

I immediately jumped backwards as the branch I had been standing on exploded into many splinters as I landed on yet another branch that was immediately threatened to break under from the pressure laid onto it. Apparently one of Madara's carefully chosen Six Paths of Pain, complete with both Rinnegan eyes in their left eye sockets and Sharingan eyes in their right eye sockets, had jumped and began to punch the log which made up the tree, scattering the brown bark and the hard, not-chakra-enhanced, wood to kingdom come. It was seemingly someone who was both very tall and large and wore a large red Chinese style hat and had the most of his face covered up. The Chinese hat wearing impurely resurrected individual I immediately recognized as Han from Iwa. The mentioned impurely resurrected tilted his down-facing head up, enough for me to see his mismatched eyes, one Rinnegan, the other a fully matured Sharingan. He was staring at me with quite the unemotional stare, I must say that it was one of the most apathetic, uncaring, disinterested, impassive stares I had had the pleasure of seeing in my entire freaking life.

I looked to the side. Sure enough, there were two impurely resurrected people who were standing on other very thick branches. One was a long, pale blonde haired woman, the other a black haired person with an open pale baby blue kimono top that showed his lean muscled chest. I identified them as Yugito Nii, the pale blonde haired woman, and Utakata, the man with the black hair and open pale baby blue kimono top. Yugito Nii had contained the Two Tailed Beast, and Utakata from Kiri had contained the Six Tailed Beast.

I quickly glanced to the other side of me, to my left to be specific. I saw three other silhouettes, a small boy with grey or greying hair and purple solid eyes, along with a large staff taller than he was tall. I quickly recognized him as Yagura, the former Mizukage. Fourth Mizukage, to be exact. He was the Jinchuuriki of the Three Tailed Beast. The Three Tailed Beast, as a fun fact, held the same amount of chakra as I did, which was strange. No human being should hold as much chakra as a Tailed Beast, but then again, I was a living example of impossibilities, wasn't I?

There were two others, both male. The other two were the direct opposite of Yagura. They were both tall, but that was where the similarities ended. One of them had a brown headpiece that split into three parts, one part going up and two of them going to the sides, covering his ears, with the left part of the headpiece's 'ear' being pierced with a small golden ring. I identified him as Roshi of the Lava Release, he hailed from Iwa, judging from his forehead protector that found place on his brown headpiece. He had contained the Four Tailed Beast.

The third male was large, well-muscled, heavily built, dark skin with strapless sunglasses covering his eyes. Slicked back, his pale blond hair was braided backwards in cornrows, and he had a blue coloured tattoo on his cheek, one that was similar to a fang of some sort. He had another tattoo on his right shoulder, a large one, symbolizing the kanji for Iron. Said tattoo, I knew, was actually a seal that had contained the Eight Tailed Beast that had been held within. Yet I didn't know that he had died. Unfortunate it was, but he wasn't one of my favourite characters anyway, so it wasn't that much of a deal to be perfectly honest. He was more of a sideshow bob, once I think about it, his raps always being second-hand, but he was funny, and I congratulated his character, he was funny when he made ridiculous raps. But I didn't think that he would be sorely missed by me or anything. Not to be cruel, but Killer B was not the best of characters out there. I think that the title belongs to Naruto. He's my favourite character of all, Konan and Hinata both so close to each other that I can't really distinguish them properly from each other for the second place.

I could see why they, as in Madara and Kabuto, had chuckled, though. Kabuto had a kunai in his hand, and I could see that he was about to flick his wrist in a way that would send said kunai towards Anko-chan. And I frowned, scowled even, as I coiled my papery legs to strike like that of a snake's charge. I needed to do the shunshin dance to save both Anko and my child-

Shit! My child! How would I save my child? I widened my eyes in surprise without me knowing I did so. How should I save my child, whose young bones were probably creaking from the strain of holding together its body. What should I do? Or more specifically, how should I rescue them? I couldn't as well just use two shunshin at the same time, I couldn't do a shadow clone without alerting anyone, I couldn't do anything without a consequence. It was either saving my child or saving Anko-chan. Who should I save? I couldn't bare the fact that saving my child by attacking Kabuto would make one of the impurely resurrected kill my precious Anko-chan. I needed her, like she hopefully needed me! But if I saved Anko-chan instead of my child then Anko-chan would _never_ forgive me, rightfully so, actually. Who should I save? I wanted to save both, but I couldn't! Is this the difficult dilemma that a father has to face in such a situation? My respect for fathers reached an all-time high, with me being one and all, as well as the situation I was in, everything considered. Who should I save? What should I do? Someone, help me! I couldn't save both, I couldn't save one without sacrificing the other! What should I do? I was helpless! I couldn't help but shudder at the impracticality of this situation. It was astoundingly obvious that if I saved Anko I could as well just make another child, but it just wasn't the same! If I knew I had a child then I should be the one raising it! Dammit, what should I do? Can't I get another little favour from Truth? I should be able to do something if I had the favour of a God, right? Right? But my wish was already spent, and I was sure that Truth was right now watching, grinning madly at my dilemma. Anko-chan, or my child. Anko-chan, or my child. Who should I choose? Dammit, help me here, someone!

Madara chuckled mockingly as he disabled his intangibility jutsu, no longer needing it while I was thoroughly distracted from him. "It seems," Madara's voice made my attention snap back to reality, and back to him. Though I didn't at all change the direction of which my body faced, just changing the direction of which my Rinnegan eyes were looking at. "That you are in a pinch," well no shit, Madara! "Kabuto!" Madara called to the butt fellow of Orochimaru's.

Kabuto chuckled as well, something I was sure the both of them had a fetish for or something. "Yes," he hissed. Quite like that of a snake, actually, "What is it you require, Madara Uchiha?" he said forebodingly. Or as forebodingly as he could. He was in the company of two of the most extreme chakra monsters of shinobi history, after all. I included myself, since I had the legendary Rinnegan and Tailed Beast level chakra and all, you know?

Madara turned his face towards Kabuto and demanded, "Kill her and the child. Now."

"Oh fuck no you don't!" I bellowed as I quickly as possible slammed my hands together in the Ram seal, the required hand seal for the shunshin and channelled as much chakra as I could throughout my entire body in fast preparation for the shunshin technique.

But it was too late. Kabuto had commanded his white snake to crush the child, splattering young blood, young bones and young organs everywhere around the local vicinity. He killed the already unconscious child, _my _child, before I could properly arrive to save it.

And therefore, too caught up in the moment, I turned to launch myself towards Anko-chan, but she was dead before my child was. Killer B, and I knew that it wasn't his fault for doing it – it was Kabuto's fault! All of it! As well as Madara's! –, stomped on Anko's head, splashing grey matter and her blood and skull's bone pieces all over the place, leaving her head a bloody mess.

I fell onto my knees.

No...

No, this could not happen.

No, this wasn't _fucking_ happening!

Anko-chan wasn't dead! My child wasn't dead! Please, don't let it be so! I didn't want this! I didn't want Anko-chan to be dead! I didn't want my kid to be dead! Please, whatever deity is out there, what had I done to deserve this? I had done nothing wrong! Most of all, why couldn't they have taken me instead? They weren't dead! Please... please, I beg of you, deity, please, let me at least be able to meet them, just one more time. I needed to. I needed to hear Anko-chan's sweet voice again, to hear my child's laughter, just once... I needed her, I needed my kid...

It was all Madara's and Kabuto's fault...

It was all Madara's and Kabuto's _fucking_ fault! I'll fucking kill them! Yeah, I'll kill them real slow! First I would open their ribcages, right in front of their eyes, then I would tear out their kidneys in front of their panicking eyes! Yes, yes! Glorious torture! Blood! Gore! All of it! I wanted to be the stuff of nightmares in front of them! Yes! I wanted to kill them, real slow! Real, _fucking_ slow! I didn't care about my self placed restrictions on the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities! I had nothing to live for anymore! I freaking _deserved_ to kill someone, preferably Madara Uchiha or Kabuto Yakushi! I wanted to slaughter them! After all, you couldn't write slaughter without laughter! So I laughed. I laughed maniacally as it was what an insane person who had nothing to lose and everything to gain would do at this situation. Right? Of course! I'm an insane person who had nothing to lose, nothing to live for any longer!

And everything to gain...

Unknowingly, while I was ranting inside my head, Susanoo had appeared in all its silvery glory, ready to render judgement to whomsoever was _stupid_ enough to try and defend themselves against it. Unknowingly, I had been on a rage induced rampage, using Amaterasu in conjunction with my Sword of Totsuka, both sealing up the impurely resurrected that desperately tried to distract me while Madara and Kabuto, in their shocked induced state, tried to flee from me, both with calculating and scared and surprised glances thrown towards me, and burning the impurely resurrected at the same time. Every time an impurely resurrected got sealed up I would get a rush of satisfaction unlike any other, I would get a form of ecstasy unmatched by anything, I would get a rush, induced by the slaughter by my hand. I wanted revenge on those pussy cats, and I was getting it. Oh, was I getting that revenge...!

I had sealed up the last of the impurely resurrected, and then I went on a mad search for Madara Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi, liberally burning trees while my Amaterasu covered Susanoo was jumping alongside and atop of me, covering all angles except below me, but I didn't care for below me. It was unnecessary to think about. All I wanted was for Madara and Kabuto to die, and then give my child, whose gender I had still not found out, and my Anko-chan a proper burial, with full honours given to them by all five Kage, animosity between the villages be damned. They were going to receive a proper burial, no matter the cost.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, I landed in a clearing, the black flames of Amaterasu brightly burning my silver coloured Susanoo, while both my eyes were so strained from the use of both Susanoo and Amaterasu that I was literally crying blood. But I didn't care, at all. I wanted blood, and I wanted Madara's and Kabuto's blood. And in that clearing was Madara, brandishing his beige coloured war fan, his white mask on his face glowing ominously and intimidatingly – had I another mindset I _would_ be intimidated –, and Kabuto, his black cloak swaying slightly from the wind that was very slowly picking up.

The night was going to be a beautiful, blood filled, scream filled, night. Oh yes, with a blood red full moon hanging high up in the sky.

"Do you have any trump cards left, Uchiha? He knows your weaknesses, and he can just as well seal us up with that Sword of his," Kabuto said, being scared from the absolutely massive killing intent I was leaking all over the place, scaring both animal wild life away and terrifying, and probably mentally scarring both of the men- no, _monsters_ in front of me. They thoroughly deserved it after what they did.

Madara replied, "Just one, but I fear that he will only stall him for a few seconds before Takuma kills him," he responded, his voice slightly quivering from the sense of fear he was getting from my killing intent.

And forth jumped Sasuke, his own Susanoo burning with the black flames of Amaterasu. "Yes, you will be the first victim of my Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, Takuma," Sasuke in a deranged manner. He was going to die. I didn't care about Naruto's obsession with saving Sasuke, I was going to freaking kill anyone who was standing in my way! Be it friend or foe, I was going to kill them for killing Anko-chan and my baby! Sasuke gave off a war cry and charged at me, his purple Susanoo shining proudly in the blood red moonlight, all the while Madara and Kabuto looked at each other stupidly and ran off to god knows where.

I chuckled apocalyptically, "So a battle of the Susanoo, huh?" I chuckled again, "Don't underestimate the power of the Rinnegan," I gave of a war cry after I shouted to the deranged Sasuke, "You fucking infant!"

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I've set up a poll. Please vote in it? It _may_ influence where this story will go.


	34. Catching Up To The Murderers

I charged head on towards Sasuke, who likewise was charging himself towards me, both of our Susanoo set ablaze, both of them ready to pound each other into oblivion. One purple, the other silver. One demonic, the other angelic. One powerful, the other ridiculously so. But I didn't care about such trivial things such as the difference between Sasuke's and my own Susanoo. I didn't care about Naruto wanting to save Sasuke. I wanted to kill him, merely because he was at the wrong place in the wrong time. He seriously needed his situational awareness to be improved. He was going to die, and there was nothing Madara could do to stop it.

I willed my Susanoo to swing its Amaterasu covered Sword of Totsuka sideways at Sasuke, who blocked said Sword of Totsuka with his own Yata Mirror shield. But it was for naught. Sasuke's purple Yata Mirror was inferior to my black flames of Amaterasu as his Yata Mirror burned and slowly disintegrated into nothingness by the black flames of Amaterasu. Sasuke made his Susanoo drop the shield onto the ground, vaporizing both the ground and the shield slowly but surely.

Sasuke growled at his loss of the Yata Mirror. But as luck would have it, his Susanoo merely spawned another one, one as equally large and imposing as the previous, but still vulnerable to my sword. Sasuke would have to dodge me at the same time as attacking, but I was invulnerable. I was indestructible when I had my Susanoo activated, despite the weakness of the Susanoo's guard when it came to the things below me. I would be victorious in this battle, despite Madara's, Kabuto's and Sasuke's wishes on their own victory. No, I would not ever abide by any of their wishes. I would overpower them with sheer willpower and strength, as well as chakra capacity. I would be victorious in the end. In a war of attrition, which it was when it came to battles of Susanoo. Never had two Susanoo wielders ever faced each other in battle. The strongest defences against each other. Who would win in the end? The last stage of the Sharingan, the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan? Or the doujutsu of all doujutsu, the Rinnegan? Which would win? Which would lose?

Well, when it came down to it, it was obvious that my own two eyes would be the victorious ones. Sasuke simply did not have enough chakra to back up his own Susanoo for extended periods of time, in contrast to me and perhaps Naruto, whose chakra reserves, while diminutive compared to mine, were still extremely large when compared to most ninja, such as Kakashi Hatake, who has commented that Naruto's chakra reserves where about a hundred times his own capacity. My Rinnegan eyes would be the victorious, because of my chakra reserves. It was a simple, yet efficient answer to the problem of who would win in a fight of the Susanoo. The one with the higher reserves would win, and by god were Sasuke's reserves smaller than mine.

I swung again at Sasuke sideways with my Amaterasu covered Sword of Totsuka. In fact, my Susanoo was so covered in the black flames of the legendary Amaterasu that it seemed as if my entire construct of chakra was simply one large black flame. I didn't need to look through the black flames to know where Sasuke was. I didn't need to sense him to know where he was. For some reason my Susanoo had developed Rinnegan eyes for me to see through, thus enabling me to watch from a distance where I should step in order to make sure that Sasuke would shit his pants in primal fear before the day was over.

My sword hit nothing but air as Sasuke had jumped backwards and disabled his Susanoo in favour of mobility and speed. I see... he would use his other Mangekyo Sharingan abilities. He would use Amaterasu extensively, as well as try and hit me with Tsukiyomi. But it would be a wasted effort. Unless he looked straight into my Susanoo's eyes he would not hit me with the Tsukiyomi.

It seemed as if he realized this, and activated the Susanoo with a war cry again, "Don't underestimate me, Takuma!" he screamed furiously, rage filling his very being as his Susanoo changed into the ranged version, its sleek purple armour more demonic than last time I saw it, which was a long, long time ago. Before I had arrived in this world, actually. Funny when you think about it. But I didn't. I wasn't thinking about my life before my entry to where I really belonged. And I wasn't about to describe how Sasuke's minuscule killing intent felt. It was, as I had described, minuscule. Not noteworthy, at all.

I grinned malevolently and shouted at Sasuke in equal, if not more, rage, "I will, Sasuke! You're a baby compared to me! An infant! You say you've experienced pain when you don't know shit!" I yelled as my Susanoo deflected one of Sasuke's Susanoo's arrows with its black flames covered Yata Mirror, sending the purple arrow towards the forest behind me, exploding in pure unadulterated chakra. I continued, "If you think you've experienced pain, then you're a mentally weak," my killing intent spiked furiously, and without my knowledge my Susanoo grew not one, not two, but three tails from the base of its spine, resembling a black flame covered half-demon, imposing, intimidating, and above all, malevolent beyond all reason. More killing intent than Sasuke had ever felt flooded the area, making him shudder in fundamental terror. "Infant," I said ominously as I took a threatening step forward, which in turn made Sasuke take a step back.

"Yes," I hissed, not unlike a certain snake Sannin, "tremble in fear, Sasuke," we both refrained the use of suffixes, as they were useless. "You are nothing. The world doesn't revolve around you. The world won't care if you die. The world will continue to live without you. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the world will be happy with your death," I said maniacally, one eye wide open in glee and the other narrowed in pure madness and rage. This was reflected onto my Susanoo, whose eyes were both mirrored by mine.

"Don't-" Sasuke stammered out in primeval fright, his Susanoo dissipated into nothingness as he fell on his pompous behind. He staggered backwards, crawled pathetically away from me. Which in turn made me laugh because of the situation. It reminded me of Sasuke's and Itachi's battle, when Itachi had activated his orange-red Susanoo with the original Sword of Totsuka and original Yata Mirror. I had them all. I had all the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities, and no one would stop me to get my revenge. No one, except maybe Naruto and Fu. Anko and my child whose gender I hadn't been able to identify – and I didn't dare look at the corpse for fear of regurgitating or not being able to get that image out of my mind – were not alive anymore, and there was no way for me to ever get them back! "Please," Sasuke whimpered as I took four threatening steps forward in response, "I don't want this," he pathetically said. My killing intent had a higher effect on him than I thought, but at least he was able to not freeze up like what most would. He probably saw his death right now. And his death was certain. Without a doubt.

But my rage was bubbling like mad underneath my mad exterior. It was bubbling so much that my killing intent went into an all time high, probably reaching as far as the Land of Lightning. How _dare_ Sasuke not want proper judgement? I would deliver his death for certain. I was about to say something before I heard Sasuke whisper something that made me freeze up. "Mommy..."

Why did I freeze up? Why was I reigning my killing intent? Why was I doing these things, or for that matter _not_ doing these things? I was even deactivating my Susanoo! I was be left vulnerable to any attempt at my life Sasuke, Madara or Kabuto would do! Why was I reigning in all of my killing intent when surely I should be judging Sasuke of his crimes? Why was I being so damn stupid?

It had a simple answer. I was a father. And thus I shouldn't, couldn't, hurt a child. Sasuke was a teenager in exterior, but in truth, he was still as Itachi had described him, a blank canvas for anyone to paint on, and an impressionable child in his interior. Now it was only for Naruto to paint on the yet again blank canvas. I had made it so...

I turned my back towards Sasuke and said, "You're pathetic," and I proceeded to jump into the tree line.

* * *

><p>I sensed myself towards the direction of which Madara Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi were heading. Apparently Kabuto had turned tail while Madara had stopped in another, very large I might say, clearing of the forest. The blood red moon was hanging low in the sky now, the yellow sun peeking up behind the horizon. The wind had picked up a little, now making Madara's and my robes flutter and billow in the unseen wind. It was time for the second day of the Allied Shinobi Forces against the Akatsuki forces, and hopefully, with my information given to Naruto he would have averted many deaths by White Zetsu. Or so I hoped, at least. But in the end I didn't care much about it. I just wanted Akatsuki to die, quick.<p>

Madara looked at me, no, more like he was glaring at me. I had landed on the opposite side of the overly large clearing and figured out immediately what Madara had wanted to do.

I could recognize those hand seals anywhere, but before Madara ended the sequence I had finished it, copying it down to the last letter, so to speak. Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram. I was the quicker one, since Madara had decided to take his time committing the technique.

"Summoning Technique, Demonic Statue of the Outer Path!" I shouted, surprising Madara beyond end. I had seen what he had wanted to do, sort of like enhancing the ability the normal Sharingan has. Seeing the future, that is.

In an extreme show of ground, earth, soil and a part of the forest being upturned behind me the gigantic Demonic Statue of the Outer Path appeared, in all its _eight eyed_ glory? It had eight eyes open? What in the world had happened for it to have eight eyes? Well, it was obvious it had the Eight Tailed Beast, seeing as Killer B had been captured, but why were there _eight_ Tailed Beasts sealed inside the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path? There were supposed to be only seven, seeing as the Seven Tailed Beast was supposedly sealed inside Fu, and Fu was still alive and all. What had happened while I had been away that made sure that both Fu's and Gaara's Tailed Beasts were sealed inside the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path? What had honestly happened? Hopefully I could get the answers I wanted _after_ I had killed the wretched Madara and Kabuto. I swore at that moment that I would prolong the suffering of at least Kabuto. Madara was too slippery to torture in an extended period of time, seeing as his intangibility jutsu could easily act up at any time.

The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path moved slightly, wriggling itself loose of any dirt and grime that had come on it. Then its mouth opened and it screamed loudly as it pounded the ground with both its fists and what seemed like metal spikes, but what I knew were the same spikes that Nagato had gotten when he had summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

Madara was startled, taking a step back in surprise. "H-How?" Madara stuttered. He was without a doubt astounded by the fact that I had summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path with such ease, and that I knew of its existence. But alas, I was not finished summoning more trouble for Madara.

Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey and then Ram. After a slam on the ground and a tongue being wrapped behind me and pulling me I saw through the eyes of the Rinnegan Chameleon. Sure, the Rinnegan Chameleon had only one eye, but it was much better than nothing, right? Anyway, I mentally ordered the Rinnegan Chameleon to camouflage itself with its surroundings, and it did so completely. Madara would without a doubt be in trouble now that he had both me, a Rinnegan summon to deal with and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to deal with. His intangibility jutsu only had a five minute limit to itself, and Konan had a way to kill him at least once. I did hope that Konan was safe, just to see Madara's face when she was the one to kill him while remaining all prim and proper in a Konan-like fashion.

But still, I wanted Madara dead, and by dear lord if I wanted him dead he would be dead within those five minutes.

I once again mentally ordered the Rinnegan Chameleon, only this time instead of camouflaging itself with its surroundings, which it still was, it ran past Madara in search for Kabuto, with me in its mouth. Meanwhile I internally ordered the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to attack Madara with all its might. And damn did I feel the shockwave it gave off when it sent it out! Holy shit, I had never felt anything like it before! It was pure, unadulterated chakra at its most raw point! It would tip off _any_ sensor in the entire Elemental Countries! It was that raw and large a pulse of chakra. There was absolutely no killing intent in it, though, but I surmised that killing intent was something only humans could perform. Which was a true assumption. But alas, I was not going to concentrate on Madara from then on. Madara was occupied getting the hell out of dodge in order to get away from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, since he couldn't use that inverse Kamui or whatever it was any longer, I speculated on the spot. Maybe it was because he removed the wrong eye when he implanted his – no, _my_ – Rinnegan eye. Or maybe it was some completely other reason as to why he couldn't use his Space-Time migration jutsu anymore. Oh well, that wasn't what I should concentrate on.

I was going to freaking _kill_ Kabuto and _anyone_ who was going to stop me from killing him!

* * *

><p>It took me a while, but finally I met Kabuto who stood alongside another man who would suspiciously be called Madara's twin. He looked almost exactly like how I imagined Madara to look like. Black spiky hair that reached all the way down to the middle of his waist, two red and fully matured Sharingan eyes spinning madly in their proper eye sockets, a regal face, red armour and a beige and black outlined coloured war fan. Whatever it was I imagined Madara to be, it would be him. But with my Rinnegan, I would definitely be able to exterminate any resistance that Kabuto or Madara sent at me. No, not exterminate, I would <em>fucking kill and vaporize<em> any opposition set up by the two ultimate villains. Oh yes, I would eviscerate anything set up by those two, Madara Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi. I would fucking kill them both! I would torture Kabuto Yakushi immediately before he could dispel his Impure World Resurrection technique.

I landed in the same small clearing as Kabuto and the mysterious twin of Madara's were in. Immediately I activated my black flames of Amaterasu covered Susanoo, expecting the twin of Madara's to attack me at a moment's notice. And he did. With not so much as a gesture, the twin, who I was expecting to be Izuna Uchiha, Madara's twin brother who too attained the Mangekyo Sharingan – doesn't it seem that every Uchiha bordering on Obito Uchiha and the more generic Uchiha have the Mangekyo? It bothered me a little, knowing that the Uchiha are that willing to sacrifice their best of friends or their closest of people for power alone. There had to be some sort of short cut to get the Mangekyo Sharingan, though. Since so many had it, I'd bet that there really _was_ a short cut for the eyes of the 'legendary' Uchiha.

But I didn't care about it right then and there. For all I cared, the Uchiha could rot in hell. And they would, seeing as _I_ was there. All I cared about right then and there-

Another large shockwave of pure chakra shocked me a little and scared off what little fauna was left there. It was without a doubt from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path that was the cause of the pule of absolutely unemotional and unfeeling chakra. The wind had a slight burst in speed from the burst of immaculate chakra.

As the burst of chakra faded Izuna, or at least I guessed it was Izuna – but it was without a doubt Kabuto's 'trump card', seeing as he was smirking widely – charged head first into the fray. He jumped over my swung Sword of Totsuka and bounced over my burning Yata Mirror when I tried to bash him with it. Izuna, let's just call him that, did a couple of hand seals, Horse, Tiger, inhaled a lot of air and probably ignited said air with fire chakra _and_-

Yeah, he's going for the Fire Release, Great Fireball Technique. In response to the surprisingly gigantic fireball I used the "Earth Release, Hiding Like A Mole technique!", Rat, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, and plummeted into the ground with breakneck speeds as the Great Fireball technique burned the ground of which I had occupied and much of the forest behind where I had been standing. I sensed myself towards the impurely resurrected, and as I neared Izuna and Kabuto – Kabuto being dumbfounded of not finding any burnt or regenerating corpse where the Great Fireball technique had been burning the ground – I grabbed hold of the impurely resurrected Izuna and pulled him into the ground, effectively immobilizing him. As I stood from the Hiding Like A Mole technique I looked, no, _glared_ heavily, at Kabuto, releasing all of my three tails worth of killing intent. And I was sure that it could be felt all the way to even the Land of Lightning as enormous as it was. Kabuto was going to die, and I swear by whatever deity exists that I was going to freaking _torture_ the monster.

"Hello, _Kabuto_," I said lowly and apocalyptically. I swear Kabuto was wanting to rush away from the place, tail between his legs and all that jazz, but my killing intent, as large as it was, was huge enough that it made Kabuto freeze up and see his brutal death at my hands.

I made eye contact with him, despite his wishes of not wanting to make eye contact with each other. It was all because of my Mangekyo Sharingan ability, Tsukiyomi. It was, after all, _the_ most feared genjutsu of them all. It could incapacitate anyone and everyone, no exceptions. At least not that I would know of. There could always be something similar to receiving pain in real life that would break off the hold of the Tsukiyomi. But those are all just theories of mine, nothing worth thinking about.

I focused a little bit of my enormous chakra pool into one of my eyes, directing said chakra through my eye to Kabuto's own, and through that path it entered the brain.

Thus enabling me to use Tsukiyomi.

* * *

><p>There was no sun to speak of. The blood red moon was hanging high in the air by unseen forces. The skies were as black as ink, and the wind was slight, brushing against the very tips of my still white kimono. I myself was as just as black as the sky, but outlined with whiteness, enabling people to see where I was and who I was. The ground was just as black, expanding as far as the naked eye could see.<p>

And littering the ground variously were torture devices, ready to be used by me. On a table near me there was the infamous Cat's Paw, shining in an unseen sun's rays, ready to rend and tear a person's – and in this case a monster's – flesh open. Next to the Cat's Paw was the Pear of Anguish, looking curiously enough much like an anal bead, albeit an overly large anal bead. But I'd not use it in such a fashion as to put in anally into Kabuto, I was not as gay as him, mind you. I would put it down his throat. Much more painful, as well as uncomfortable. On the same table were nails, cigarettes that curiously shouldn't exist in this world – being beige on one end and white in the other. The cigarettes in the Naruto world were completely white – as well as a hammer or two. All were beaming in the same unseen sun.

Further away from the table of which the Cat's Paw and the Pear of Anguish, and the various other torture devices, were on was the Judas Cradle, sharp to a point and glimmering in the same unperceived sun as the Cat's Paw was shining in. I would think of using that one as one of the last, since its killing factor was one of the higher ones. Next to the Judas Cradle there was a large bucket, bordering on becoming a pot, filled to the brim with liquid acid and mercury mixed into one, along with a table besides it with a pair of thick gloves on it, seemingly durable enough to withstand the poisonous acid in the overly large bucket.

In an Iron Maiden with a window where the head of the victim should be was Kabuto, all ready to be tortured for the crime he had committed, already screaming bloody murder, begging for mercy.

First I would make sure that he would get pain. Then I would force him to do the necessary hand seals to dispel the Impure World Resurrection. After all, I could stay in the world any longer, now that I had become insane. Yes, I realized that my blood-lust had gotten an all time high, but I wasn't about to

Now it was time to get torturing! How fun I would have it!

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>The poll that can actually affect the storyline is still up, you know. After the next chapter it will be closed. FOREVAH!


	35. Goodbye   Naruto!

**Poll closed, Bleach won.**

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><p>Kabuto Yakushi was screaming his lungs out, figuratively. And it did give me a good idea. Maybe I could extract his lungs once I was done tearing his flesh with the Cat's Paw torture device. I raked his abdomen with the Cat's Paw, eliciting another ear-piercing scream from Kabuto's mouth.<p>

I continued torturing Kabuto brutally for several mind-hours because of what he had done, for the sorrow he had helped cause. For not deciding to choose the right side to stay on. For not doing things the right way. For not, say, assassinating Orochimaru when he obviously could have done so whenever. For those reasons alone Kabuto deserved the torture I brought upon him. For those reasons alone Kabuto needed to dispel the Impure World Resurrection before anything truly bad could happen. Not that anything bad _hadn't_ happened, it was just that I would want to prevent anything bad from happening again, fully knowing Naruto would be able to maintain the peace between the Great Five Shinobi Countries.

Finally, Kabuto begged, "Please, stop," he cried watery tears as he continued to plead, "Please, I'll do anything, just stop this madness," he continued. Oh, he did_ not_ just call my torture of him madness. Wait a minute... he called it madness. Madness! Perfect! I've always wanted this kind of fun.

I made my Tsukiyomi world create a giant, deep hole with several spikes on the bottom of the hole. Being in the mood for some fun I made Kabuto stand up with a gesture of my hand, using my Deva Path's control over gravity to manipulate the location of which Kabuto occupied. "Madness?" I whispered lowly, but still loud enough for Kabuto to hear what I was saying. Judging from Kabuto's agonized expression it was difficult for him to be standing up, despite his Yin Healing Wound Destruction technique. Though I was totally responsible for him not having access to said technique. Enough about that, though. Time for some funny stuff!

"This!" I shouted, tilting my entire body backwards, making one of my legs go up in the air, "Is!" I once again shouted directly into Kabuto's pained looking face. Finally my foot was on the same level as Kabuto's flesh-torn chest. "Sparta!" I finally shouted, kicking the white haired Yakushi in the chest, sending him careening down the hole with the long and thin spikes at the bottom of it. Kabuto screamed once again as the spikes penetrated his skin tissue, muscles, and grinded his bones to dust.

* * *

><p>Kabuto screamed himself hoarse as he fell on his knees, twitching in phantom pains. His tears fell on the dirty ground and dampened his round glasses. He sobbed in pain, and in his pain filled haze he didn't see me approach him. Once I was close enough I grabbed hold of his neck and hoisted him up so his feet didn't even touch the ground of which I was standing on, of which Kabuto didn't even deserve to be standing on. For he had killed the one, no, the two, people I treasured the most. For that he deserved death by gruesome torture.<p>

After he had dispelled the jutsu which kept me in the world of the living.

I understood the fact that I couldn't have some things explained. I understood the fact that I could not have the thing about Naruto becoming Hokage explained, or the little happening of his marriage to Hinata. Why was he announced as Hokage, when clearly Danzo was the one to become the Sixth Hokage. Although it was temporary, what with his death by Sasuke's hand. But still, if Danzo became the Sixth Hokage, then that would stall Naruto's ascension to Hokage, because the Land of Fire's Feudal Lord would be indecisive of whether or not Naruto should be the Sixth Hokage or the Seventh, which would give the messenger, who had the message of Tsunade's revival to bring, time to bring said message to the Land of Fire's Feudal Lord and his council of advisers and Naruto himself.

But perhaps it was time to think about such things at a later date, maybe in the afterlife. I could always gain the answer from my dear Anko-chan and my child in the life after death, right?

So I decided at that moment to just up and make Kabuto dispel the Impure World Resurrection zombies, make them go back to the realm of which they should be residing inside of.

"Kabuto," I whispered menacingly. Kabuto flinched at probably both the tone of my voice and that I even spoke, despite being up in the air like how he was. "You will dispel the Impure World Resurrection technique, or I will personally make your life a living hell," I brought our faces close to each other, and whispered in an antagonizing manner, "Am I understood?" I glared at him with the sickest, most intense look I could muster.

Kabuto weakly nodded despite being hung high up in the air, "Alright," he promised, "I'll do it, just please, let me go!", and I did. I loosened my hold on his neck enough for Kabuto to wriggle his way out of my vice like hold.

Kabuto once again fell on his knees, coughing up copious amounts of both saliva and surprisingly, but pleasantly, for me at least, blood out of his mouth. He rubbed his neck and levelled a weak glare at me. I merely smiled malevolently, a smile promising immense pain if the receiver of said smile continued to glower at me. Immediately Kabuto turned his head pathetically and said, once again pathetically, "Alright, Takuma," he spat on the ground a glob of blood that had probably been bothering him a little. I smiled. Of course, I wanted him to be as tortured and have as pathetic a life as possible, but I would rather he finished his release hand seals first.

As Kabuto wove through the three hand seals necessary, Dog, Horse and Tiger, I began thinking about the possibilities I had opened up and the consequences of the actions I had taken. There was obviously a serious change to the storyline of the Naruto universe if Naruto was the Hokage and was married to Hinata. I also understood that there was a serious change to the storyline if Anko, of all people, was pregnant. I wondered if Kurenai was pregnant, but it wouldn't surprise me that much if she was. It had been canon that Kurenai and Asuma had been together and had had sex in the bedroom. Or perhaps somewhere else, but I wasn't about to investigate in the matter of _where_ they had done their business. It didn't matter to me. Maybe Anko-chan was interested in knowing if Asuma was good in bed, but she would without a doubt remain sexually loyal to me, despite me being dead. Or at least I hoped so. But to be honest, I wouldn't mind. I was dead at the time, Anko was grieving, and a good way to let go of that grief was through sexual intercourse. So while I would be lying if I said that I would be disappointed, I wouldn't make that big of a fuss about it. Anko-chan was, after all, and despite how cheesy this will sound, my one and true love. Yeah, really fucking cheesy. But it was true. Love was when someone likes the other unconditionally. And that was extremely rare. I loved Anko-chan unconditionally. And she loved me unconditionally. Or at least I hoped so. You would never know about other people's minds, how they worked. Unless you were a Yamanaka, but that had nothing to do with the current situation!

And it was time for me to meet my dear Anko-chan.

"Takuma-sensei?" I heard a familiar voice resonate in the clearing I and Kabuto were in. It was very familiar, and the way the voice sounded, as if it were a woman wanting to sound like a man, and succeeding, it made me shiver in excitement. The voice carried itself with confidence, and a hint of enthusiasm that had been squashed through repeated tragedies.

I turned around a full one eighty, and sure enough, the one I suspected was there in all his Hokage glory. Naruto was standing there, with his traditional Hokage robes and his Hokage hat hanging lazily on his back. Along with Naruto was Hinata, Naruto's wife – I mean really? That was awesome for a Naruto x Hinata fan like me! –, A the Raikage, Tsunade and Fu, the Jinchuuriki of the Seven Tailed Beast. Or was, at least. I still couldn't believe it, how could she have been the Jinchuuriki of the Seven Tailed Beast when clearly there were eight eyes opened in the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path? Or to formulate myself better, how could she be alive when she had been the Jinchuuriki of the Seven Tailed Beast when clearly the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path had eight eyes open, thus meaning that the Seven Tailed Beast was sealed inside the statue? It was confusing, but at least I could get the answers by simply asking anyone of said questions that temporarily plagued my mind.

I decided to cast off those questions for a later date, so instead I smiled fondly, "There you are, Naruto, Hinata, Fu," I said affectionately. I hadn't seen Naruto at all in quite a long time, so I was surprised when I saw him in the Hokage's red and white robes, and the Hokage hat attached to his back. But by looking at it with my Rinnegan eyes I saw that there was chakra flowing through the entire hat. It was as if the only thing keeping the hat up was the chakra that held it up. What I didn't know at that time was that it was a chakra control exercise I had had a hand in creating. By channelling as little chakra as Naruto was able to, he was able to make the hat stick firmly on his back. There wasn't a single string to hold the Hokage hat up, so I simply assumed that the hat was sealed to be stuck to the Hokage robes.

Naruto stared wide eyed at me, and I swear I saw a tear or two trickle from his eyes, but Naruto quickly wiped them away. Fu was grinning widely at me, like as if she had been right about something all along and looked at Naruto, her grin widening even more. I didn't expect her personality to develop to one similar to Naruto's, what with the grins and all. "See, Naruto? I was right!" Fu said mirthfully.

Naruto stared some more, and wiped his eyes with the sleeves of his Hokage robes. Then he grinned as if there wasn't a single burden to carry anymore. He looked as if the entire world, which had previously weighed on his shoulders like a ton of weight – something I expected he had carried without failure or complaint, now that he was Hokage –, was lifted from his now held high shoulders. He looked as if he were in high spirits. Something he obviously was.

But why were they here to begin with? Why were they even in the Mountains' Graveyard, or in the area? They should be battling White Zetsu and the impurely resurrected zombies that Kabuto had resurrected. Not here, worrying what that... massive... killing intent... I sent was... oh. So that's why they were here, and that was why so many Kage, or in Tsunade's case, former Kage, were here.

I chuckled at my own thoughts, but it brought my attention to Kabuto again. The wretched butt fucked man – no, _monster_ – had already paid his debt in pain by full. He wasn't the one fully responsible for the sorrow that had been caused to Naruto. It was Madara, but I couldn't use Tsukiyomi on him. It was too risky. Madara could potentially overturn my control on the Tsukiyomi world by using his own Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. But bringing my thoughts back to Kabuto, the monster had to have some form of decency, right? Well, no, not really. He had been merging his 'master's' deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA for short, with his own body. That was kind of fucked up to begin with. It probably made Kabuto into a royally fucked-in-the-head person.

When Kabuto finally reached the last hand seal, Tiger, which he did carefully I might add, he said lowly, so as to not disturb anyone from the touching moment, and so that he wouldn't antagonize me any further. He didn't want to go into the world of Tsukiyomi again. His grey matter couldn't handle it. He would need the medical expertise of Tsunade to properly heal up again after it. And Tsunade would be the leading expert, and she was, on medical science concerning healing Tsukiyomi's effects on the addled mind of people.

Finally, after what had seemed like an hour of tenseness, Kabuto said, "Release."

I quickly turned around, and with a shunshin I hugged both Fu and Naruto, since they were close enough for me to do so.

As I dissipated into a papery substance I faintly heard Naruto and Fu yell to me something I didn't quite make out. Something on the lines of "We will miss you!" or something. Either way, I didn't mind it at all. As long as I was close to Naruto and Fu I was happy enough to live by.

* * *

><p>I heard a commotion around me, people gasping in surprise, running around shouting god knows what. Their voices all mixed into one another, making them indistinguishable. I had to know what was going on. Why were the people around me figuratively screaming their lungs out? It didn't make any sense. Maybe it was my arrival, perhaps it was some murderer that had just made a public killing, or maybe it was some completely trivial thing as to why they were shouting like I don't know what.<p>

I felt a foot tap me in my ribs. It sent a jolt of pain through my entire body, as if I hadn't been touched my entire life. Or as if I just got my nervous system. I felt my geta sandals on my feet, my kimono and the clothes I had underneath the kimono. I felt it all. I even felt the ground of which my hair was brushing up against. Which was strange, because my hair doesn't have any nerves at all. Strange, that. But I guess that it was something I should consider as something unexplainable that could be accounted for at a later date. After all, I had to know what was going on around my body.

My sense of smell was overwhelmed by a smell of a putrid mixture between puke, defecation and blood. It was a strong smell, a bad one, but strong nevertheless. I felt like regurgitating just from the very smell of it. It was that disgusting. I seriously needed to get the hell out of that area of blood, vomit, and fecal matter. And I needed to get out of it immediately.

But alas, I couldn't get out of the area without seeing where exactly in the afterlife I was. So I needed to get a decent understanding of where I was and _then_ I would figure out how to get the hell out of dodge. Though I totally don't know where that phrase has come from. I mean, get out of dodge? Where was this 'dodge'? Was it some town or city or something? Or was it about getting out of the area of where it would be considered 'dodging'? Either way, I wanted to get the hell out of dodge. Where ever dodge was.

I opened my eyes when I felt the foot tap my ribs again. I groaned when the light penetrated my eyes like a drill. It wasn't painful, per se, it was just incredibly uncomfortable. So I put a hand over my eyes to cover them from the burning sun.

"Hey, mister," I heard a small, feminine voice say, "Are you alright?" the voice asked, followed by another tap of the foot on my for-some-reason sore ribs.

I looked at the person, still covering my own eyes with my hand as I was looking at the quite androgynous human. To make it worse, the person was wearing a pink flowery kimono, making him, or her, seem very feminine. Which reminded me of Haku, to be honest. Haku was androgynous, Haku wore a pink and flowery kimono when he met Naruto in those woods. Still can't get over the fact that Haku is a boy. I mean come on! Haku is so girly, he shouldn't be a man! He cannot be a man, no. But alas, that was how life was like. Things happened that you didn't want to happen. I knew that better than anyone.

I saw the feminine person bow down to both cover me from the sun's glare and as to look at me with deep concern. Sure enough, she, or he, had long straight black hair, coming down to his or her lower back, as well as brown coloured eyes. Very much like Haku of the Yuki clan, actually.

I groggily sat up, "Ugh, is this the afterlife?" I asked, befuddled from the experience of what I at the time didn't know what was. I put a hand on my head and felt a powerful migraine rip through my head like a steamroller.

I heard a giggle coming from the effeminate person. The commotion loudened some more, and I heard a gruff voice say, "Come on, we don't have all day. Take the guy and let's go," he, for it was obviously a man, said curtly.

The epicene person giggled some more and hoisted me up. I felt a pin prick on my neck, and I promptly lost consciousness.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I know it isn't much for now, but this chapter is necessary. If anyone can guess who the two people are, then props to you, and leave a review stating what your guess is!


	36. Welcome To Soul Society

I felt myself lying down. I heard only a little noise, an occasional muffled shout of rage or indignance. My nose was not streaming any information to my brain about any putrid mixtures of uncomfortable smells.

I felt a hand touch my cheek. Subconsciously, I leaned into it. I was... in heaven. I felt as if nothing was weighing me down. I felt powerful, mighty even. I wanted to think that it was my Anko-chan that was touching my cheek. I hummed in pure pleasure that the hand gave me for some reason, "Anko-chan..." I murmured, continuously nudging the hand with my cheek affectionately.

I heard a feminine giggle, not quite like Anko-chan's, but close enough. "No I apologize, but I do not know who this 'Anko' of yours is," the effeminate voice said good-naturedly and stroked my cheek again, but then stopped, taking his, or her, hand back to their own side.

Wait... what? Whose did that hand belong to, then? And why was my face heating up like an oven on fire? Oh right, it was embarrassing to know that I had been comforted by someone I didn't know. I really didn't want anyone to use that instance to blackmail me. Otherwise I'd have to kill someone, and I didn't want to kill anyone. If I did I would be blood thirsty, and it's best that I'm not that. It would be detrimental to whomsoever was around me.

I snapped open my eyes, only for them to stare directly into a pink something. I had to squint my eyes at the light colour. There was too much light, I had to make it diminish somehow. I groaned at the uncomfortable feeling of getting too much light to my eyes. I sat up slowly, idly noting that my chest was completely bare of any clothing. It didn't bother me too much, seeing as there was only a single other person in this room, and it seemed that the person was female. And an attractive one at that.

I looked around and saw that I was in a decrepit old house, and what seemed to be the rather small attic of it. Actually, I thought it was rather homey, to be honest. The window to my right was closed, but it was obvious that there was a problem with the window, as there was a slight breeze coming from its general direction. The futon – I identified it as such almost immediately – I lay on was a boring brown colour, and from what I could tell, it had seen better days. However, in pristine condition for some reason, was a chair right next to the door on the far side of the room, the room being less than two metres long and a meter wide. On said chair was my kimono, along with the rest of my clothes, my black undershirt, dark grey underpants, and my tabi socks being laid perfectly atop of the bundle of superlatively laid clothing. My wooden geta sandals were right underneath the stainless chair.

To my left was a decaying wall of rotting wood, but curiously without smell. On said wall was a picture of a strangely familiar couple. It looked like a man and a woman, or a teenage girl more like, were standing on a stony and aged bridge, the female on it smiling benevolently and having her eyes closed and the gruff looking man with bandages covering the lower part of his face. Even with the bandages, you could see that he was smiling widely, as if he had just met a thought long lost friend of his. He also had a gigantic, single edged sword with a circle close to what seemed to be the tip of the humongous butcher knife-like sword, as well as a semi circle near the handle of it on the blade's edge. There was a very small handle on the blade, as if the handle itself had been detached from the blade. And by the looks of the shaft in the man's hand, it was obvious that the thing in his hand was the missing part of the sword's stock. Running beneath the stony bridge was a narrow river, but it seemed as if the bridge was necessary, as the bridge was incredibly wide, and a lot of people were walking behind the couple.

And speaking of the couple, they seemed to nudge a memory deep within my memory bank inside my brain.

It was Haku of the Yuki clan, and Zabuza Momochi, wielding the Decapitating Carving Knife.

That sent me in a loop. Why were Zabuza and Haku here, in the afterlife? Shouldn't they be sealed inside my Susanoo or something? Or is there more to it than that? Only way to know was if I asked them about it. There was also the question of where I was. That was also to be asked. I needed answers, and quick.

"Are you going to stop imitating a gold fish or are you going to talk?" an impetuous voice that came from the direction of the door. "I ask because I hate gold fish," as the voice finished I turned my head to face the speaker, and lo and behold, with his bandages covering the lower part of the face, and a sleeveless dark shirt covering his chest, showing off a good pair of muscled arms, and a pair of dark blue pants that reached all the way to his ankles, and a pair of dark blue toe-less shinobi sandals, was Zabuza Momochi.

"No way," I whispered, wide eyed at the former member of the legendary Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. "You're..."

Zabuza arched an eyebrow, or what would be an eyebrow, seeing as he had none, and narrowed his eyes at me, "I'm... who?" Zabuza asked.

I shook my head a little bit and began, "You're Zabuza Momochi, former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and wielder of the Decapitating Carving Knife," I once again shook my head and turned my head to the effeminate person who was still smiling beside me, though the smile, I noted, was slightly amused, and not just polite. I pointed at him, or her, whatever, and said, "And you're Haku of the Yuki clan, owner of one of the last Bloodlines from the Hidden Mist Village, the Ice Release."

Haku giggled into his, or her, hand and nodded, "Correct. Now since you know so much about _us_, how about you introduce yourself, hm?" Haku asked politely of me, though I was certain that although neither of them showed it, they were both surprised at my knowledge. I was certain of it. They were, after all, ninja, and trained at deception. Right? Of course, this is Haku and Zabuza I was talking about. They were freaking bad-ass! Or at least, Zabuza was. He was blood thirsty, but had was kind at heart. That was sort of like me, but not really at the same time. Bah, those thoughts would be available to think about at a later date, not then.

I shook my head again, "Yes," I coughed into my hand in embarrassment at the problem of them not knowing who I was. I was, after all, not of this universe, and therefore no one would know who I was. "Of course," I put a hand on my bare chest and bowed at the both of them, "My name is Shinji Takuma. I am the wielder of the Bloodline of the Rinnegan, and-"

"Rinnegan?" Zabuza and Haku half-yelled in chorus, interrupting me from my introduction.

"Why can't we see it, then?" Haku asked politely, but there was curiosity and a hint of scepticism over the fact that I had the Rinnegan.

"That is because I have cast an illusion on it, a permanent one. I can disable it if I so wish. Do you wish to see it?" Not waiting for an answer I formed the Ram hand seal and in a puff of smoke my Rinnegan eyes were revealed to the world. Or in as it was in this case Zabuza and Haku.

Zabuza took a step forward, not as a threat, but as a curious gesture, seeing as his face was set in an inquisitive expression. "The Rinnegan is said to be a legend, the eyes of the mythical Sage of the Six Paths," Zabuza continued his dialogue about his impressive knowledge on the Rinnegan, "The owner of the Rinnegan is said to be able to master all of the five chakra natures, as well as the unresearched Yin-Yang Release. The Rinnegan user is said to also be able to manipulate gravity, summon anything and anyone they want summoned, said to have immense strength and speed, is able to see chakra, the ability to separate souls from their bodies at a touch of a finger, and absorb all chakra techniques," I was unsure how Zabuza knew all that, but I was also sure that whomever had told Zabuza of that information was dead by now.

I smiled knowingly, "And that's not all," that single sentence took both Zabuza and Haku aback, "The wielder of the Rinnegan is able to use all Bloodlines that have anything to do with combining the chakra elements," I shifted my eyes to Haku, looking deep into his, or her, brown eyes, and continued, "Meaning, I can use the Ice Release," those words surprised Haku, and he, or she, was about to say something before I continued, "And that also means that I am able to use the Wood Release, Storm Release, Lava Release and the Boil Release, among others," I smirked at Zabuza's and Haku's stunned faces. It wasn't always that you met a Rinnegan wielder that claimed to be able to use every single chakra combination nature.

My smirk widened even more, because there was also my Mangekyo Sharingan abilities, but I thought that I should hide those, as my blood thirst took an all time high every time I used one of them. So I better not use them. Or tell anyone about them either. It was always good to have a trump card, yeah? Of course it was practical to also not use those trump cards of mine.

But there were other things to worry about. After all, I didn't expect Haku and Zabuza to be my enemies for a long, long time. Or perhaps at all. Hopefully they would never be my enemies. They would never be openly hostile towards me, definitely not if I showed them that there was not a single reason for any hostility towards me at all.

"No way," Zabuza said, already amazed by the capabilities of the Rinnegan's powers. Haku was staring wide eyed at me, but was otherwise the more composed of the two.

I chuckled then shrugged, "Well, that's what I've experienced anyway," I said.

It was time for me to properly get introduced to the afterlife, if this was it. "So," I rubbed the back of my neck nervously, since the two were sort of starting to stare at me, if they hadn't already. My voice snapped them out of their amazement of my Rinnegan, however. "Are you going to introduce me to the afterlife or something?" I asked of them.

Zabuza shook his head a little, still a little taken unprepared by the revelation about the Rinnegan, while Haku just returned to smile politely and began to talk, "Yes, this is the afterlife. We are currently in Rukongai," Rukongai? That meant that this was Bleach, right? I sure as hell hoped so. Because of various factors that could be taken into account and counted up at a later date. Though... I hoped that Anko-chan was somewhere too. I would love it if she were in Soul Society, whether or not she was a Shinigami or not remained to be seen. "Which is divided into eighty districts," oh, I know. But I played dumb, since it was better that I did _not_ know anything about the afterlife. It was better that way, since if I said I knew everything about the afterlife Haku and Zabuza, mostly Zabuza, would be suspicious of me. "The lower the district number the higher the crime rate. It is unfortunate, but the Shinigami," I played dumbfounded by the discovery of 'Shinigami', "I'll explain that later, but the Shinigami are too busy handling other problems, such as Hollows," once again I looked surprised. And it was surprisingly easy for me to do so. "Again, I'll explain it all later," Haku giggled into his, or her, hand. "The higher the district number, the lower the crime rate. But in the middle of Soul Society – that is the dimension of which we live in, by the way – is Seireitei, the Court of Pure Souls. It is the capital city of Soul Society, it's where the Shinigami live. Now," Haku wriggled around a bit to find a more comfortable seating position, "The Shinigami are what you would call the 'police' of the afterlife. They are divided into thirteen divisions, each having a special task assigned to them. Zabuza-sama and I don't know anything about each of the individual division's assigned to them. The Shinigami's divisions are all leaded by a captain for each division. So far, we only know the name of the captain of the first division. His name is," Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, right? "Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. He is the oldest captain of the Gotei thirteen – that's what the military and police force is called – and therefore is the strongest of them all," Haku sighed a little, "But trouble is, we don't know what they mean by 'strong'. He is old," that's for certain, "but how is he the strongest?" Haku looked at me with a calculating glance, but then closed his, or her, – dammit, I can't get over how girly Haku looks like! It's like he, or she, deliberately chose to seem as cute as possible! Dammit all! – eyes and sighed once again.

"That is the question Zabuza-sama and I asked ourselves when we heard that the first division captain the strongest. We figured it out just today, actually. The powers in this dimension is very different from ours. The nature of chakra has more to do with combining both spirit and body to mould the energy formed by the combination into outside effects, such as creating a fire on for lighting, or water for drinking. But here, it is completely different. Here, people have what they call 'reiryoku', spiritual power, and said reiryoku is constantly decompressed and constantly generated. The decompression is called 'reiatsu', spiritual pressure, and if brought in enough quantities can overwhelm a being made out of reiryoku. In this dimension, everything is made out of reiryoku. And everything _living_ is generating reiryoku. And apparently, with training and natural selection or something, the amount of reiryoku generated varies. The more reiryoku a person generates the more reiatsu a person lets out. I have heard that it is possible to suppress reiatsu to the point where it is nigh undetectable, but it is impossible to completely suppress it."

And then Haku stood up and looked out the window as Zabuza tossed my clothes in my general direction. I heard a little scuffle downstairs, and Zabuza grumbled something – while Haku just sighed, apparently in disappointment – and went downstairs to whatever that scuffle was about. I prepared to dress underneath the sheet of the futon. Haku continued, "Now about Hollows. There is little to know about them, since people tend to fear them very much and shy away from the subject whenever I or Zabuza-sama bring it up. So the only thing we have been able to conclude about Hollows is that they are all monsters, with monster-like characteristics, and all have white masks on their faces and glowing eyes," I nodded in response to Haku's words. It all made sense, though I didn't know about the 'constantly decompressed and constantly generated' thing about reiryoku. I just figured that there was a set amount of reiryoku a day and it would be repeatedly replenished or something. But it did make an awful amount of sense, now that I thought about it.

Haku turned around with a flutter of his, or her, kimono, and folded his, or her, arms in front of his, or her, flat chest. He, or she, smiled kindly at me, "So, any questions? There might be something I can answer for you," Haku smiled friendly at me.

I thought for only a moment before I asked a very wanted question of mine. "Are you a boy, or a girl?" I asked 'intelligently'.

Haku blanched and blushed a little bit. He, or she, began scratching his cheek, quite reminiscent of how Naruto used to do when he was embarrassed. "We-Well, I'm a boy," Haku said, but had to repeat it once, "I'm a boy," Haku nodded, determined to make me think that he, or she, was a boy.

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. "Prove it."

Haku lost some colour in his, or her, face, and simply sighed. "Is it really necessary for you to know whether or not I'm a girl or a boy, Takuma-san?" Haku cleverly asked of me.

"Well," I nodded a little and looked directly into Haku's eyes with my own Rinnegan eyes. "That is a good question, but I'd rather know for sure than to speculate. You are, after all, quite androgynous, and I'm tired of not knowing whether or not you're a boy."

Haku blushed heavily this time, but undid his, or her, pink and flowery kimono. He, or she, confirmed that, yes, Haku was a boy.

I blushed as well, and immediately looked away so Haku could hurry and do his kimono again. "Oh... I didn't know, sorry..." I dumbly said. Well, that covers that. Now I know that Haku was a boy. Good to know, I guess...

"This is awkward," I said, Haku hummed in the affirmative in response. But I shook my head in determination. It was time to shake that awkwardness away, and to look Haku in the eye and apologize! Go, Shinji Takuma! You can do it!

And I did. I looked Haku straight into his eyes and I said, "I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable, Haku-san. How can I make it up for you?"

Haku shook his head, "No, it's alright. You didn't know, and you did want to know. Don't worry about it. I have gone to similar lengths to let people know that I am male. Again, don't worry about it," Haku politely shook off my apology as if it were nothing but a trivial matter. Which in his eyes it were probably, but in my own perception was not. It was definitely something worth knowing.

I nodded my head, "Alright," I drawled. I had finally completely dressed myself. All I needed was to dress into my comfortable, and wholly stainless, white kimono. I stood up, now totally dressed, and ready to know why Zabuza was shouting so god damn much downstairs.

Haku must have noticed my confused stare down at the floor, because he tilted his head towards the only door in the room and proceeded towards it. "Come on, I'll show you the rest of the gang," and I followed him down a flight of turning stairs. They were old, but curiously pristine at the same time.

Once we reached the bottom of the stairs I saw a curious sight. Zabuza was trying to tame two energetic adolescent children. One, male, had red hair done in a ponytail that sort of made him look like a pineapple, and the other, female, had black hair that in the right light would make it look purple.

I recognized them both.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I hope you aren't angry at me for making Haku what he is supposed to be. A guy. Also, can you guess who the two children are? If you can't, then shame on you! D:


	37. Renji And Rukia

They were Rukia Kuchiki, though she had yet to get that name, and Renji Abarai. I was still unsure where Renji gained that surname, since the district we were most likely in was the Inuzuri district, which was the seventy eighth district, if my perfect – when I want it to be – memory was anything to go by.

Renji leaped up onto a table, and shouted, "I'll be a Shinigami if I want to be, you hear, Zabuza-san, Rukia?" Zabuza rubbed the bridge of his nose. That happened often, by the looks of it. And Rukia was having a comical tick mark on her forehead, which made her take Zabuza's side of the conflict. "You hear me?" Renji yelled, while Haku shook his head and proceeded to carefully tread towards Renji.

Rukia, whether she noticed Haku's approach or not, began to shout insults at Renji, "What are you talking about, you oaf? Shinigami are the _reason_ us people in Rukongai can't live well!" Ah, there seems to be some animosity between Rukia and the Shinigami. Wonder what that would be. It probably has something to do with Rukia's sister, Hisana. "If you continue being a reckless idiot, I'll skin you alive!" ouch, brutal much, Rukia?

Haku was right behind Renji, and when Renji was about to retort to Rukia's insults, Haku grabbed onto the back of Renji's dirty green shirt and hoisted him up in the air in an impressive show of strength. "Now now, young man," Haku began, with a smile that promised a great deal of pain should anyone disagree. He was without a doubt scary when he did that, now that I think about it, "It's impolite to shout when the receivers are _right besides you_," Haku said, a shadow covering his eyes in a malicious manner. Screw scary, it was damn _frightening_, that's what it was! I didn't know that Haku could be that scary and cute – did I say that? Ups – at the same time.

Renji, however, wanted none of it, and didn't even bat an eyelash at Haku. He continued to wriggle in Haku's grasp, letting loose childish squeals of indignance at being lifted up into the air, by a girly boy, no less. He shouted at Haku, "Let me go, Haku! I'll become a Shinigami if I want to, alright?"

Haku giggled at Renji's antics, and then, without warning, threw him behind himself. Renji landed heavily on the staircase that I occupied at the moment, the staircase threatening to collapse at a moment's notice now. I simply stared at the dizzy Renji.

"That's what you get for being a moron, Renji!" Rukia shouted at Renji, whipping around with a clenched fist.

Haku sighed in disappointment at Rukia. He murmured something so low I couldn't hear it, but Rukia heard him clearly. "What was that, Haku-san?" she threateningly said. But she wasn't nearly as scary as Haku when he was angry. Or as scary as Zabuza on a bad day. That would be scary as fuck. Just imagine. An angry, no, _furious_, Zabuza. The scariest part is that I can see it happening at some point, like if Haku died or something. Which had already happened once, and I was pretty sure that if Haku died again Zabuza would be absolutely outright _pissed_. Not pleasant for the enemy, let me tell you that. For we have already seen what had happened to Gato. He died. By decapitation. After getting stabbed in the stomach. And was thrown in the water afterwards. Horrible death, but nothing compared to what Zabuza would have done if he was capable in his arms. His arms were disabled by Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan, after all.

Haku innocently said, "Nothing," folded his arms behind himself and looked around as if nothing was wrong. Ah, well played, well played, Haku. Next thing you know, he would be a player of women. And in an obscure sense, it would be possible. Since he was extremely feminine, some girls would be fairly attracted to him. Bah, what was I thinking about? It was absurd thinking, something I shouldn't be worrying about, at all!

Rukia sighed in frustration, but then her eyes fell on me. One of her eyebrows rose up in response, and then she huffed. "Who are you?" she asked me.

I smiled benevolently and bowed at the waist. "My name is Shinji Takuma, pleasure to meet you..." I drawled, as if asking for the name of hers. Which I did, because it would be suspicious if I knew about the afterlife, wouldn't it? I would be really suspicious if someone knew about my life, all down to the last detail. Like, I couldn't just go to Rukia and Renji and say, 'Oh, hey, I know your name is Renji Abarai, and I know your name is Rukia Kuchiki, or at least your future surname will be Kuchiki. I also know you will meet a boy named Ichigo Kurosaki, and he will be taking all your powers for a while. Oh, and did I mention you will become a Shinigami? Because that'll happen!'... see? Can't do that approach. So I'll have to ease into it. Become their friend, and then from there I'll do something in the future. I sure do hope that I won't age past my prime. Because that'll suck. Big time.

Rukia huffed again and crossed her arms, "I'm Rukia Inuzuri. Remember that name," she began to glare at me, "Because I won't be repeating it for your benefit. Ever," ouch, harsh much, Rukia?

I simply smiled at her and bowed again. It was best to stay on her good side, whatever it was, because she was a very important deuteragonist in the Bleach universe. Deuteragonist being a secondary character, or a character that follows the main character. Exactly what Rukia will be. And speaking of Rukia, why did she take that name instead of some other?

Oh right. Kenpachi Zaraki had his surname from the district from which he hailed from. That explains a lot, doesn't it? It does did give a reason as to why Rukia took _that_ surname of all surnames, right?

Anyway, once I locked eyes with Rukia she flinched and began to point at me with an expression that seemed to be frightened, if anything, "What's with those eyes of yours, Takuma-san?" ah, I see. I forgot to put the illusion back on. Dammit, I knew it would be some form of consequence for my disabling of the genjutsu that was similar to the one Tsunade was using on a daily basis.

I wanted to seem dramatic as possible, to leave an impression of sadness if you will, and it wasn't that difficult, either. It was because of my power and inabilities that Anko-chan and my child were dead. And they were probably not in the Bleach universe, so I had to simply move on. Anko-chan would have wanted me to move on. But of course, like every grieving husband or boyfriend out there, it was difficult beyond comprehension. So I had to take nothing for granted and live like the wind, eh? Anko-chan, I miss her. I had been dead for so long, so I cannot imagine how Anko-chan would react, since personalities change constantly due to outside stimuli. How would she react? What would she say to me if I bedded another woman? If I lived on and dated another woman? I'd consider it defiling her memory by doing so. I cannot live on.

Unknowingly, my facial expression had changed to that of sadness, and it made Rukia wince in response while Haku and Zabuza looked at me with a curious facial gesture. Renji was unconscious, so he couldn't properly respond to anything. He was thrown at a staircase face first, after all.

I sighed, "Let's _not_ talk about it, alright, Rukia-san?" I pleaded. Then I motioned at Renji, "And please, don't talk to Renji about it. It's a..." I hesitated, "sensitive subject."

Rukia nodded swiftly.

* * *

><p>It had been over thirty years since my arrival to Soul Society. I had discovered that one does not age past their prime in this dimension. That was good, very good in fact, because that would mean that I would be able to tirelessly search for my beloved Anko-chan. She was worth to me more than anyone else. I was determined to find her.<p>

While I was in Rukongai, I discovered that everyone around in the seventy eighth district feared both Haku and Zabuza, though mostly Zabuza. It was mostly due to appearance, but Zabuza did tell me that he had 'roughed up' a few civilians that were obnoxious to the point of where it irritated even Haku. From there the rumour mill did the rest, and not before long, Zabuza and Haku were the most feared individuals in most of the lower numbers of South Rukongai. Often were they challenged by some unlucky guy who had one too many beers, but Zabuza and Haku always came up on top. Always. No exceptions. And now that I was there, well... no one wanted to get on our bad side.

Which was curious, actually. After an admittedly short time, I found out that Zabuza, Haku and I still had the chakra system, not a shred of reiryoku. That was strange, because everything in the Soul Society dimension was made out of reishi, spiritual particles. But I came up with a theory. Perhaps if people were _sealed_ into whatever they were sealed into, it would mean that they would retain their chakra pathways and their pressure points. When I tried, I found out I could use all the jutsu I could used when I was alive, and I found out that we, as in Zabuza, Haku and I, had not a single shred of reiryoku inside us. Again, that was strange, since everything was made out of reishi. But as I had already mentioned, it was probably because I had sealed them.

I had asked Zabuza and Haku what they remembered of their previous life, and they told me that they remembered everything up to the point where they were sealed. Either into my Susanoo, which I cannot remember if either of them were – and they told me that the time they were sealed was very fuzzy, thus they could not truly recall anything from that point – or by the standard sealing arts. Either way, that was good. If they couldn't remember me using Susanoo then all the more power to me. That would mean that they wouldn't be remembering my blood thirsty side.

As the years passed by we, as in Haku, Zabuza, Renji, Rukia and I, moved up the food chain, so to speak. We moved up the numbers of the districts of Rukongai, intent of satisfying Renji's need to become a Shinigami all the while I was trying to encourage Rukia at becoming a Shinigami as well. I tried to do so with subtlety, because I didn't want to be pounded into the dirt by her. She showed repeatedly, only to Renji though, that she was extremely violent when she wanted to be. Thus earning her playful nickname from the rest of us as the 'purple hotshot', or just 'hotshot', because of her bad and untameable temper.

While we were moving up the numbers of the Rukongai districts, I stealthily sent out disguised shadow clones that searched for Anko-chan. I couldn't search for my child, because the first time I saw our child it was too dark, only moonlight was illuminating, and it wasn't nearly enough for me to get a visual representation for my child. It was ironic, I didn't know how my first child, my _very first child_, looked like, despite seeing the silhouette of my child. It wasn't enough just to know how the silhouette looked like. For all I knew of, my child could be Toshiro Hitsugaya. But we all knew that that was improbable to the point of where it was ridiculous. So instead, I looked for my Anko-chan. I was sure that she wouldn't abandon our child, no matter what.

However, none of my shadow clones found her. Not even in the furthest corner in Rukongai.

Though to be honest, I didn't search for them in Seireitei. So I wouldn't really know if they were there. But the possibilities of them being there were so low I didn't know what to think about. And I didn't want to risk the Gotei 13 to find me and then experiment on me by unnatural means. I bet that at least Kurotsuchi would be interested in it.

But one interesting thing happened when one of my shadow clones stumbled onto a clearing in West Rukongai, sixth district Fugai, at night. It was over twenty years since I had arrived into Soul Society when I discovered a curious sight. I already knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

It was all of the Visored – no, not yet – and they were struggling against a Hollowfied Kensei Muguruma. In the same part of the clearing I saw Kisuke Urahara and Tessai Tsukabishi, they too struggled to contain the Hollow virus that flooded Kensei Muguruma's reiryoku system with Kido.

The worst part of it all were two things.

The worst part of it all was, of course, that for each one that Kensei hit, the Hollow virus spread. Meaning that whomsoever was hit by Kensei Muguruma, such as Shinji Hirako or Hiyori Sarugaki, would be inflicted upon them the Hollow virus. They were fighting them off, but one by one, they were picked off. And it was all because of Aizen's manipulations that they were even there to begin with.

The second worst part was that I didn't – no, more like couldn't – do anything to help them, at all. There were several reasons for that that my shadow clones figured out in less than a second. One of the reasons was that if I interfered, I would interfere with the canon storyline. That wasn't good, because for one, it would mess with the storyline in such a way I wouldn't be able to predict it properly, should I interfere with it, thus meaning that when the time was right, I couldn't very well interfere as one could do if they were in the Bleach universe.

Let's say I did interfere, would it be for my own interests or of that of the 'greater good'? What was the 'greater good' to begin with, anyway? Was it Aizen, who was merely a little bit misguided in his attempts to throw off the Spirit King, who was thinking of the greater good? He could be, or he could just be an egotistical and egocentric maniac who only thought to be the one to rule them all? But maybe he wasn't misguided. Maybe he was right. Maybe the Spirit King needed to be overthrown, especially seeing as the current system simply wouldn't hold itself up for a long time. It was time for a change, and Aizen was seeing that. But his methods of doing so – killing off an entire city – were severely deluded. Therefore, I wouldn't be taking his side in the fight. If I did, I believe Anko-chan would demolish my self-esteem by dating another guy, probably just to spit in my face and saying 'Fuck you', or something.

So in order to avoid complications I didn't interfere. It would save me a lot of time.

My shadow clone dispelled itself, sending the information and its thoughts to me and my other shadow clones. I nodded at the shadow clones' thoughts. It was correct in its assumptions and hypothesises. If I would interfere it would cause too much of an impact on the canon storyline, thus revoking the advantage I had. But sooner or later I would have to interfere in the business of Soul Society. Maybe I could find a way to administer chakra into Ichigo Kurosaki, making him even more special than he already would be. But alas, I had not a reason to think about it. For right then I had to take care of something else. It was my turn to cook the meal, so I had to continue doing so.

So it was a hundred years before canon starts, huh? That was good to know. Real good to know.

But there was one good thing that had happened during the incident where the to-be-known-as Visored, Kisuke Urahara, Tessai Tsukabishi and Yoruichi Shihoin would be banished from Soul Society. I discovered that Shinigami, no matter how powerful they were, couldn't detect me. At all. The only way they could possibly detect me would be through means of chakra, should I use the Hiding Like A Mole technique, for example. They, as in the Shinigami, could either do a wide scale destruction technique, like Byakuya Kuchiki's Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, for example, that would devastate an entire area of landmass, in order to find me, or they could do a visual search for me. Both would be taxing on the Shinigami, either on their time or their spiritual power, their reiryoku. Both of which were valuable to the Shinigami, so should a battle occur between me and the Shinigami, I would have the upper hand. Unless, of course, the Shinigami tread onto the air, but I believe I could manipulate my Rinnegan's power over gravity so that I could levitate somewhat. I did hope it wouldn't be demanding on my chakra deposit. As soon as I got this information I spread it carefully to Haku and Zabuza, but I soon, in my disappointment, discovered that they already had fought and killed a few Shinigami that were pompous in their own right. Well, Zabuza did the killing, Haku just disabled. Apparently the Shinigami, despite being made out of reishi, still had their pressure points and could still be inflicted poisons, should any of us chakra people want to utilize that option. I never used poison, but it was good to know about it. I could put that information to use, should I get my hands on any poison.

But alas, all that background information was unnecessary to know when you were surrounded by over thirty or so armed thugs who wanted money and hadn't heard of me yet. Just how I like to keep it. Not being heard of made the surprises that I made that more entertaining for me. Oh yeah, life could be fun sometimes, don't you think so?

"Giv' us yer money and we ain't gonna kill ye! Maybe," one of the hooligans rowdily demanded of me.

I chuckled. How cute. There were a few infidels who thought themselves to be as tough as meat. Well, I would have none of it. "Whatcher laffin' 'bout, ye scumbag?" another of the goons demanded, just like the previous one.

I grinned, "Well, I just thought how cute it was that you're playing all tough like," I said cheerfully. I was currently in the fifth district of East Rukongai, and though I thought that the crime rate was low enough for me to do some casual shopping with money I had gotten through some odd jobs, I didn't expect there to be such a large gang of thugs without me hearing a rumour or two from the rumour mill. But oh well.

They all shouted in outrage and indignance. It wasn't always someone mocked them, _them!_, and got away with it. "Only the cursed Shinigami can get away from mocking _us_, ye scurvy scumbag!" yet another one of the henchmen yelled. His statement made me wonder if they had been dealing with Shinigami before. But hey, it wasn't that big of a deal. No matter how weak the Shinigami, if they know Shunpo they'd be able to get away from them, no matter how strong the opponent was.

And then several of the thugs charged at me.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I am sorry for the rough ending, but it does serve a purpose! :D

Hey, has anyone read the latest chapter of Naruto? Freaking sicktastic, man! Awesome stuff! The plot twist made me so fired up I didn't know WHAT to do! I swear, if Kishimoto-sama does anything even _close_to that, I'll freaking offer him to suck his dick! (joke) He is that awesome!

Thank you for reviewing, everyone!


	38. The Boy

I dusted off my brown kimono – I had changed attire from the last one. It got ripped at the seams after a while, and I hadn't found a white kimono – and looked up to see the only thug left. He was breathing heavily, as around us were groaning and twitching madly men, his fellow brothers in all but blood, lying around and bleeding a little bit. I was feeling generous, so I felt complied to spare them of their lives. They hadn't done anything to deserve my judgement just yet, not that I knew of, so I hadn't killed them where they stood.

When I was battling the henchmen I was being watched. I had noted – while I was practically butchering the thugs into the ground – that the one watching wore black clothing, had red armour covering his form, and had very long, spiky, black hair, reaching all the way to his waist. He – for there were no bulges on the red plate armour covering his chest – also had a pair of eyes that when I made contact with them I almost froze.

They were Sharingan eyes.

But I decided to think about it at a later date. Because when our eyes made contact he disappeared in what I presumed was a sealless shunshin, or a shunpo.

"Wh-what are you?" the lone man screamed at me. He was frightened, that was as clear as it was clear that it was day. He was shaking something fierce, his hold on his club was wavering and his eyes darting to the sides, looking for an exit, an escape, from me. Clear signs of both nervousness and fear.

You see, I hadn't exactly been idle in the years I had been in Soul Society. I had trained rigorously under Zabuza Momochi's tutelage. I had trained under him in taijutsu, and while he had said that I was a hopeless case, he did mention that I had muscle potential and my reactions to when something got close to my face could be trained out of my brain. Zabuza succeeded in training me – with the help of shadow clones, of course, since muscle memory was all in the mind, and that whatever stress the shadow clones' muscles would be experiencing would be transferred to my own, thus rapidly decreasing the time it took for me to gain some muscle – in taijutsu so that I was skilled enough to take on the standard Genin. That was enough in my books, but not enough for Zabuza to be satisfied with himself training me. So he trained me to the ground. He was such a strict teacher that even _I_, with my enormous chakra reserves and all, was exhausted. It was a new feeling, actually. I hadn't felt that exhausted at any point in my life, at all.

The exhaustion felt good.

Zabuza was an excellent teacher, a very strict – and I cannot emphasize enough on how strict he was – and very oppressive. But those are all good qualities when you're supposed to train someone in the field of combat. He would point out the bad things that I had done in my stances and attack – had I overextended a punch? A kick? Did I move correctly from this offensive stance to that defensive stance? – and correcting them – "Yes, you did overextend that punch. And that kick. And no, you need to move your leg that way. Stand firmer!" – helping me become better at taijutsu, albeit gradually and slowly.

And I was gathering the fruits of my labour, after twenty years of rigorously training myself to the ground, I finally was good enough in my own books in taijutsu. Perhaps I could incorporate various ninjutsu into my taijutsu. Like the Raikage, A, from Kumo, did. He had the Lightning Release Armour. It would prove efficient if I could use it, so why not simulate the effects of it by channelling Lightning natured chakra through my brain, enhancing the speed of which my thoughts were processed into the land of unnaturalness. While not as enhanced and as efficient as the Raikage's own nintaijutsu – the Lightning Release Armour quickened A's reflexes so extremely much that he could dodge Amaterasu's black flames – , it was still formidable to comprehend. One second was like four seconds for me to react to. It was amazing, being able to react like lightning. People would talk about the man with lightning reflexes who had kicked more asses than the Shinigami. It was an extremely good feeling. But I had to suppress the feeling, in order to not make it go to my head. I had to be careful. If I continued showing off I believed that I would come at an impasse with Zabuza and Haku, and I'd eventually get mad with power, something I had already been.

I chuckled at the guy's anxiety. It was fun, instilling fear to the degree of where people would shake at the mere mention of my name. But alas, I shouldn't let power get to my head. It would be detrimental to my health, I believe. I bowed politely at the only conscious man in a sharp manner, all the while grinning mentally like a mad man, "I am Shinji Takuma, the second coming of the Sage of the Six Paths. Glad to meet you," I drawled at the last word, as well as raised a questioning eyebrow, as if I was asking for the name of the miserable thug.

The man, predictably, turned heel and ran, screaming "He's going to kill us! He's going to kill us all!" again and again, not stopping for a moment until he reached the safety of his home, wherever that was. Not that I was any interested in knowing where his home was. I would find myself being a stalker of men – as in, I'd be gay – first. And I was a flaming heterosexual, just so you know, what with my relationship with the beautiful Anko-chan and all.

I chuckled again, and turned around and picked up a beige bag of groceries. It was what I was out to originally get first, after all.

I began to think as I began to walk back to the house that Zabuza, Rukia, Renji, Haku and I occupied. Who could the person that had watched my fight with those henchmen be? Could it be that it was just a hallucination? It was always a possibility that my insanity, despite being slightly temporary as it was, could be affecting my vision, giving me hallucinations of people that curiously reminded me of the Uchiha I had fought before I had captured Kabuto. It was also possible that it was Madara, or Izuna. To me, they both looked very much alike, like twins they were. There was also the chance that it was, just like I had told myself, a hallucination. It was always a chance.

I felt a tug on my kimono. If it wasn't for the fact that it was so low positioned – at my waist – I would have thought it to be one of the thugs that had regained consciousness and had given chase, probably thinking I was a coward and was fleeing, despite the ass kicking I had dished out.

But turning my head around and facing the the one who yanked on my kimono, I saw a child with large green eyes and black, shaggy and spiky hair. He was deathly thin, as well as quite tanned, as if he had gotten a little bit too much sun. Somehow, I could sense some sort of power coming from him. But it was probably reiryoku, nothing for me to worry about. But his thinness was disturbing. Perhaps his guardians – if he had any – were abusing him? If that was the case then I'd bring the _mother fucking_ thunder. I frowned on child abuse, and every single abuser of children deserved hell, no matter what gender the abuser was.

I knelt down and stared deeply into those green eyes that seemed to be too large not the child. He was that thin. I smiled gently at him, "What do you want, kid?" I said kindly to the boy.

The minor stared at me for less than a second before his eyes widened and he began opening his dry – and I noticed that his lip was cracked, as if it had been punched open – mouth to say something, only to close it again. Then he began doing gestures with his hands, motioning for his again open mouth and rubbing his fingers together. It was as if he needed money to buy food. And I had both of the required items.

Being slightly bewildered I asked the adolescent a question, "Can you not speak?"

The child shook his head in the negative, and began to once again, this time with more vigour, gesture at his mouth and rubbed his belly while licking his lips.

I nodded, "Do you need food? Or money for food?" I asked of him.

He nodded energetically, earning himself a chuckle from him.

I threw my head to the direction I was going, "Then follow me; I'm about to go home to the rest of my people," I was actually referring to the people that could still, for some reason, use chakra, "and if you wouldn't mind waiting a few more minutes, I'm sure the rest of them wouldn't mind you joining us for dinner. Is that alright with you, little one?" I patted him on the head, ruffling his hair a little.

Once again he nodded vigorously.

I chuckled again, "Alright, let's go," I said. I stood up from my kneeling position and held out a hand for the boy to take, which he did.

"Are you sure you can't speak?" I asked of the boy, trying to force concern for the boy through my voice, which I must say wasn't that difficult, seeing as I was genuinely concerned for the boy.

The boy shook his head, indicating that he couldn't speak. Oh well.

We continued to walk towards the destination I had set for before I was rudely interrupted by the thugs, the house of which we occupied. I began to ask the adolescent child a few questions. "Can you tell me your name?" I asked, "Because I can't keep saying 'you' all the time, now, can I?" I jokingly added, almost as an afterthought, actually.

The boy giggled, or at least his shoulders shook a little, and shook his head. "Well, what should I call you then? Should I give you a name? Or do you want a pen and paper to write down your name?" I continued to ask him.

The boy smiled at me and held up a single finger with his unoccupied hand. Huh. Maybe he chose option number one, or he wanted me to look up. It was without a doubt the former anyway, so I just continued, "Do you want me to give you a name?" I questioned of him.

The boy nodded.

"Alright then... what about-" and so I continued to ask of him which name he liked. I had tried Shunsui, I had tried Shinji – despite it being my name –, I had tried Haku, Zabuza, Renji, Rukia – just to screw with my fellow residents, of course –, and many more, but the child decided that he didn't like any of them, at least not as of yet. Finally, when we reached the small house we resided in – temporarily, since Rukia had agreed to finally become a Shinigami under the guise that she would watch over Renji, to make sure he wouldn't do anything _too_ harsh on himself –, I decided to just drop all pretences and asked of the boy, "Alright, fine, I give, what about Madara?", because despite the hardships Madara had put me through, I still had to have a begrudging respect to the monster. He had a thing for long-ass plans, plans that would make Light from Death Note be a little bit jealous. Keyword being a little bit. There is nothing that would be able to beat Light at planning, not L – since he died –, not Lelouch from Code Geass, not anyone. Too bad he ended up like I had, insane and drunk on power.

The boy giggled, and then vigorously nodded at the name.

What? He wanted a monster's name? Well, who would I be to judge? It was only a name, albeit a name that reminded me of the sorrows that I had experienced, but a name nonetheless. Huh, how annoying. I hoped right then and there that I didn't have to deal with the boy staying. Otherwise I might just kill him because of the name he chose. It was, after all, a monster's name. But that would mean that if I killed him I would just up and become insane. It was insane to kill someone _just_ because of the name they themselves chose to have, right? Right? Of course! Stupid, now I wanted to hit myself. Hard. But I wouldn't. Zabuza would do that for me next time we went to train on taijutsu. He was brutal like that.

I believed that I shouldn't voice my thoughts, though. It was obvious that the boy didn't know about the meaning the name had to me. So therefore, voicing my thoughts would be absolutely dumb, not smart, whatever.

I knocked on the door twice and opened it, "I'm home!" I yelled a little bit, "And I've brought us a guest!", and then I heard a scuffle from the attic. Of course, Renji and Rukia just _had_ to be fighting again. They always seemed to do that whenever I was out to buy us something. Zabuza and Haku weren't inside the house, since they had both said that they would be training somewhere. I wasn't about to complain about the current loneliness of the place. I rather liked being left alone, sometimes.

I heard the scuffle escalate, and then Rukia – it could only be Rukia, her piercing voice was the only thing that could possibly grate my nerves that much, not that they did very often – yelled something along the lines of 'Get up, you oaf!' or something.

Then, after a few moments of even more scuffling, the two love-birds – I wished they weren't, seeing as I wasn't exactly a fan of Renji's – finally descended down the stairs. They both looked as if they had had a fight, which meant that their clothing was less than presentable. Though Rukia's clothing looked far more pristine than those of Renji's. Rukia was huffing like a madwoman, and Renji was huffing like a madman, both refusing – in quite the childish manner – to look at one another, crossing their arms and huffing even more. "Now that you two love-birds are done with your business, how about you properly greet our new guest?" I asked. I continued, "His name, for now," I reluctantly began to tell them the boy's name, "is _Madara_," I said, with only a small amount of well-hidden venom in my voice. It was decided. The child would change his name, whether he liked it or not.

Rukia's and Renji's personalities did a one-eighty, both becoming cheerful and compliant all of a sudden. Rukia noticeably more so than Renji. "Oh, how cute!" Rukia pinched the boy's cheeks like how a mother-hen would. I wisely decided to let go of the boy – I simply refuse to call him Madara! Oh, why did I even suggest that name? Stupid! Stupid! _Stupid_! – and joined Renji's side. I knelt down and whispered into Renji's ear something that made Renji's eyes go wide, and then narrow. He nodded in determination.

After all, it wasn't always that he got an order from me, now, was it?

"Watch over the boy. I don't like the feeling he gives off of him," I had told Renji.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I apologize for the shortness of this chapter, but I've lost inspiration. I beg of you, reader, please give me some suggestion as to how I can get inspiration again! I don't care in what form it comes in! Just give me something. Suggest a fanfiction for me to read, please! Anything! I am getting desperate here.


	39. Hypothesis

**Am I the only one who sees that to the right?  
>It's all "Share-" and stuff, but who the fuck actually presses any of those buttons? <strong>

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><p>"We are done here," I said to the gentle Haku, who was clad in a feminine pink kimono, as he was wont to do to deceive anyone who would try and manipulate him to their own causes. Something that happened surprisingly often, actually. There was that one occasion where a pervert that looked distinctly much like Jiraiya – without those kabuki clothes that he had worn, and neither the red geta sandals or the face paint. nor the white hair – that had hit on him, but when Haku had told him that he was a boy, oh the facial expression was forever burned into my brain! It was so hilarious.<p>

But anyway, we were both currently doing a job, something I would have left to my shadow clones, but I didn't want the boy – after a week of holding a roof over the his head, I still refused to call him 'Madara' – to get suspicious as to how I was able to be in two places at once. Right then Haku and I were cleaning a house as a job for some random and fairly nondescript citizen of the Sixth District of South Rukongai. It was a menial job, but it was necessary, and besides, it paid well.

"Good to know, Shinji-san," Haku said kindly, smiling prettily – did I really say that? – and leaned the mop he had been holding onto the dark wooden wall. It was a fairly large house we were in, and right then, we were in the entry hall. It was a large entry hall, with regular dark wood as the floor, and a slight rising before the door itself. There was a picture on the far wall, opposite the door, that looked quite ugly to my tastes. The picture itself was portraying a dark grey landscape, and had cows and trees dotting the hills. The sky was a dull grey colour, and was of little significance. The only thing that was of any importance was the single set of eyes that actually looked like a pair of Byakugan, in the top left corner and looked down onto the hilly landscape, as if watching it as its protector. Why the household decided to maintain that piece of crap was beyond me, but I wasn't about to judge.

I too leaned the mop I had held and slid the bucket with soap water right on the wall. Cleaning the house was a redundant task, and hadn't it been for the fact that I, Zabuza and Haku had agreed to lay low in order to avoid detection by the Shinigami authorities I would have amassed the usage of shadow clones to aid everyone everywhere to gain as much money as possible and then try to gain access to the city of Seireitei, or bribe the Shinigami to help me, and Zabuza and Haku, of course, to the world of humans. I would feel much more at home there, after over fifty years of not having any contact with any advanced form of electricity, such as computers or television. Oh, how I missed the internet. It was really grinding my nerves whenever I was bored and couldn't train because of sore muscles or anything and there was no contact with the internet or something of the like.

The couple that lived here walked into the entry hall, the man holding a bag of clinking money in it, and the wife of the two – both of them had featureless white eyes and long, shiny, black hair, something I attributed to being Hyuuga in the past life. I had to ask them if they remembered their former lives – spoke to us, "Thank you for cleaning this house for us, dears. We really appreciate it," the woman said, smiled, and bowed at the waist as a gesture of gratitude. The husband of the household bowed as well, but it was much less grateful, more rude and aloof if anything. Much like how I expected a Hyuuga to be, actually.

Haku and I smiled, both of us _men_ – I have a difficult time imagining Haku as a guy, due to his androgynous appearance, but seeing as he has literally _showed_ me that he was male concludes that fact – doing so kindly. We both took the small bags of precious money with a sense of appreciation, or at least I did, and just before Haku opened the door I turned and asked of the couple something. "Do you remember anything of the life you had _before_ you died, sir, miss?"

Both of them were slightly taken aback by the sudden question, but the man started to glare at nothing in particular – something I correctly assumed was the Hyuuga glare – and the woman began to close her eyes and scratch her chin in thought. "Hmm..." the woman said, "I believe that there is something I remember," she shook her head, "But I'm afraid that if you hear the tale of which I could tell you, you wouldn't believe me," she looked up and stared at us – Haku and me – with sad and disappointed eyes. Which was quite the feat, because her eyes were, as told before, featureless.

I smiled gently, and jerked with my head a little, "Try me," I said. I was determined to know whether or not they were actually Hyuuga, because that would mean that the picture behind them actually held some form of significance to them.

The man sighed and began to glare at me. He scoffed and crossed his arms, as well as averted his gaze. The woman noticed his slightly childish behaviour and began to chide him lightly, "Now now, Shimura," did he really share the same first name as Danzo? Talk about unlucky. "No need to be so immature. They deserve to know since they have helped us clean the house. Tell them!" she lightly scolded the man, a smile adorning her older face.

Shimura, as his name was, sighed and began to, not glare at us, but simply look at us with indifferent eyes. "Very well," he answered his wife, – I presumed it was his wife, they looked so much alike one could expect them to be siblings – "I am the one of us that remembers the most of our past life, you see. I believe that in our past we were married. We were both a part of a clan," and then he got all high and mighty all of a sudden, like he was on top of the world and knew it, "A powerful clan, one that held high positions in the politics of the country we were in. We were called," and here he leaned forward, as if he was revealing some form of conspirational evidence, "The Hyuuga clan."

Well, that surprised me. I stared wide eyed at the couple. How could some of the Hyuuga clan be here? I had assumed that since I found no one else, and encountered no rumours about people with supernatural abilities besides the Shinigami, when I pulled that risky move – the one en massing the shadow clones. I couldn't believe I was so stupid as to not put a henge on any of them! It was risky, but thankfully my shadow clones knew the risks, sort of, and were laying low – so how come the two Hyuuga were here? I was sure that it required sealing one's soul to be able to properly inhabit Soul Society. So why were they in Soul Society? And why were they not reacting to us not having reiryoku, thus no reiatsu? Could it be that they didn't have any chakra? Could it be? There were many variables, far too many. Perhaps they actually were from the Naruto universe, and were in fact not really dead, but in fact sealed, so that they wouldn't be able to be properly resurrected by the Impure World Resurrection. The only way to know was to ask. But that would be rude, and interrupting the man's tale.

"The story goes that the world _we_ were from was chaotic, war-torn, and ridden with incurable diseases so vile that they would be able to completely overturn entire clans in the matter of days without the proper treatment. There were three main clans that ruled the entire country that my clan had inhabited, called Fire Country in the future. Those clans were," he paused for dramatic effect. It didn't work that well, because I knew most of the things that he was about to say. I hadn't been idle and just thinking of battle and the future while I was in Water Country, you know. When I had nothing to do, I brushed up on the history of the Elemental Nations. "The Senju clan, the," Uchiha clan, "Uchiha clan," another pause for a failed dramatic effect, but for his sake I took half a step forward and forced my face to hold an interested façade, something I was sure they saw through immediately, but said nothing about, "And the Hyuuga clan," he ended his sentence with a clear note, coughing into his hand a little to signify importance. And then he continued on and on about how great the Senju were, the clan of a thousand skills and the body of what would become Fire Country, and how great the Uchiha were, claiming them to be the left eye of Fire Country, while the 'greatest of them all', the Hyuuga clan, was the right eye of Fire Country. So to speak, of course. It would be outright creepy had Fire Country's actual body been made out of the Senju clan, but hey, I wasn't about to tell anyone how freaking creepy that was.

"Now," finally he began to end his tale about the amazing feats of the wood-growing Senju clan, the malicious and powerful eyes of both the Uchiha clan and the Hyuuga clan, "Any questions to my tale of splendidness?" he arrogantly told us.

Haku had politely maintained a face of shock and pure awe at the spun tale. It was, after all, true, but vastly exaggerated the weight of the Hyuuga clan's influence in the course of history. But alas, I had wanted to ask them of one thing, "What is this chakra you speak of? Can you still use it? And is it different from reiryoku?" I asked. Haku caught onto what I wanted immediately and nodded a little.

The man scratched his chin a little, thinking about how he would explain the magnificence that is chakra to us 'commoners', "Well, chakra is a mix between two energies," and then he began to explain the workings of chakra, how it was a mix between both spiritual energy and physical energy, how in order to harness the energies of chakra you had to manifest it early on, as in, in your childhood. Otherwise you would be doomed to be a civilian forever, and be branded as a free loader, unless you worked hard to earn your money. Money was all important these days, so there was a major significance to it. Besides, who didn't want to be filthy rich? The only real way to get wealthy is to work, and work hard.

I nodded and put a hand on my chin, "I see. That is truly magnificent, that chakra energy thing. Say, I have one more thing to ask you about, Hyuuga-san," I requested of the elderly couple, and bowed at the waist.

Both of them nodded, the man indifferently and the woman eagerly. She said, "Of course, dear. What is it you want to know about us?"

I looked her in the eye and asked her, "Do you still possess this chakra energy? I ask because I would like to see it."

The man, in an aloof manner, said, "No. We do not have any chakra in our bodies anymore. We don't know how this came to be, since all sentient things need chakra to live, but we do not hold any chakra. Instead, we have reiryoku. Here in Soul Society it is necessary to have at least some form of reiryoku to live, be it Hollow, Plus or Shinigami. All need reiryoku to live," he paused for a moment, and then continued, "Why do you ask these questions?"

Getting wary, are you now, old timer? I schooled my expression into that of polite indifference – don't know how it is polite, but I somehow managed –, and proceeded to answer the Hyuuga's question. It was, after all, fair that they asked me a question when I had done so as well. "Because," I paused for a dramatic effect, something I actually succeeded in, while Haku just stared at me, as if he – still can't get over the fact that he's a man. He doesn't look like it, that's for _damn_ sure – was wondering what I would reveal to the aged couple. "Haku, Zabuza and I have chakra."

And that took the old couple by surprise. "What?" the man half-yelled. The woman simply stared at the both of us, but mainly at Haku, who was looking at me and was shaking his head at my brashness. "H-How? Everything in Soul Society needs reiryoku to live, and now that I sense you, neither of you have a shred of reiryoku. You're like perfect and unnoticeable voids of nothingness for the blind. Not even the most skilled Shinigami would be able to detect any of you. How come you have chakra yet we don't?" the husband – it was confirmed now that he was the husband of the household, and not the brother – demanded, wildly swinging his arms forward in a gesture of either anger or surprise.

I interlocked my fingers behind my head, "Well, I have a theory. Do you know the Impure World Resurrection?"

The elderly couple's eyes widened, and then they nodded, "Yes, it's the Second Hokage's wretched technique. It resurrects the dead and when one is resurrected through the Impure World Resurrection they cannot be killed by any standard means. I bore witness to the first use of the Impure World Resurrection by Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage. He resurrected my father, but it wasn't my father at the same time. The monstrosity that awoke could not feel any emotion, nothing could sway it. It was an emotionless husk, only able to move, and more importantly, fight, due to the chakra added to it by the summoner," huh, I didn't know that. You learn something every day, right? "It requires three things for it to be successful. First, it requires some of the DNA of the one who the summoner wants to be resurrected. Second, it needs a living body to be able to resurrect the dead person. Third, it requires the dead person to be just that, dead. Why do you ask if I know the Impure World Resurrection?"

I nodded, "Because my theory is that if one is summoned through Impure World Resurrection then they are able to use chakra. Or if the one who died is sealed so that their soul cannot be resurrected again, I presume, means that they can still use chakra. Or at least, those are my theories. I believe that they are all viable theories, since the fact that the person who the summoner wants resurrected needs to be in the 'pure world'," cue air quotes, "What I believe is the temporary world for the dead from the Elemental Nations, the one sealed will be forever just that, and cannot come back. But since the soul is essentially just life-chakra that means that the sealed one is able to get all their chakra back, just as they were before. The same with the impurely resurrected. There hasn't been a case of a repeated summoning, so I don't really know if it is possible to be resurrected again, but from what I know it is impossible to resurrect someone after they have been resurrected once by the Impure World Resurrection. Once the task that has been assigned to the impurely resurrected has been completed, the Impure World Resurrection technique sends the resurrected to Soul Society _with_ the life-chakra they possess, as well as their normal chakra systems and whatnot. What they also retain is their knowledge of the world they have been in, the Elemental Nations," and then I began venturing into unknown territory, "However, I do not know why _you_ have retained your memories. Maybe you've been lucky. Alas, perhaps that is all true. Perhaps what I've said is true. But know this; all I have said you should take with a grain of salt. Don't expect it to be correct. It is subject to change, as is everything in this universe," I finally finished.

The woman of the household we had helped nodded, "I see. That does in fact make sense," and then she shook her head, "But why should we question the divine, when clearly they are working in our favour?"

I began to think about that. Of course, why should I hypothesize over the smallest of things? I didn't want to, nor did I need to, hypothesize and question anything, as long as everything was working in our favour I should question it. But perhaps it was depression speaking? I didn't know, and to be honest, I don't think I should care, either.

I shrugged, "I don't know. I guess I'm a scientist at heart, right?" Alright, so I'm lying a little. Sue me. I looked the woman dead in the eye and said, "Scientists always need a logical reason for everything, don't they? This is simply my way of saying 'I can make sense of this'. That is all there is to it."

The man nodded and crossed his arms. "Very well. Now, what is it you would want," he said.

I chuckled. Of course, the more observant of the two must have realized that I wanted something. "What makes you think that-"

I was rudely interrupted by the man, who jerked forward harshly, "Do you think me a fool, Shinji Takuma? What," he paused, "Do you want?" he demanded.

I looked at the bags of money Haku and I held. They were small, and only held about seven thousand ryo. Not that much in the grand scheme of things, but it was alright in anyone's purse. And in our case, it was more than enough, something I was quite glad of. I looked straight at the man, "I only want you to keep a lookout for anyone who looks out of place. As in, I want you to take in anyone who looks as if they are from the Elemental Nations. It could be that it's someone I know," I bowed deeply at the waist, "I would very much appreciate it."

The man huffed and the woman got all starry eyed. "Is it someone you love that you're looking for? It's so romantic!" she said, and wiped an imaginary tear away.

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><p>Needless to say, they agreed to look for anyone who looked as if they were straight out of the Elemental Nations. Curiously enough, they had contacts all around Rukongai, which was strange, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. The couple were very kind to me and Haku, despite the distant and indifferent personality of Shimura Hyuuga. He was actually a nice person, once you got to know him a little bit better. The woman's first name was Yuki, which was curious as well, because that was the clan of which Haku was from. Very strange indeed. Both of them shared names with things I already knew of.<p>

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><p>Zabuza and I entered a clearing with dirt and sand spread evenly about. There was a large and probably very deep stream halving the entire clearing like that of a Yin Yang symbol. "So, ready to get your ass kicked, Takuma?" Zabuza said determinedly, as well as ruffly and roughly. He was preparing his cleaver for battle.<p>

"Are _you_ ready to get _your_ ass kicked to kingdom come, Zabuza?" I taunted as both of us took a taijutsu stance, with mine being a lot more focused on the defensive than offensive, since I was a ninjutsu specialist.

"Now you're on, Takuma!" Zabuza roared and threw his sword high up in the air and performed a special seal for the "Hidden Mist technique". A thick mist began to seep out from nowhere, and then I heard Zabuza chuckle. "You're done for."

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I've said it before and I'll say it again, I suck at pacing. But I promise that there will be some action in the next chapter. There's too much talking going on in my opinion.  
>By the way, anyone got any suggestions for good fanfictions? I like Naruto and Harry Potter, as well as Bleach and a few others! Thank you for reading, faithful reader! :D<p> 


	40. Discuss

One horizontal swing. I ducked underneath it. The cleaver cut off a few of my hairs; that's how close it was to cut off my head.

A kick aimed for my ribs. I brought up my hands to defend it. The kick sent me crashing into a nearby tree. The tree shook intensely, shaking off a few of its green leaves. I believe I cracked a rib or two.

The sword wielder charged at me, his gigantic sword held up high, ready to strike me down with fervour. He swung it down. I brought a hand up and infused my entire arm with a lot of chakra, hardening the skin, flesh, muscles and bones to the point of where it was as difficult to penetrate and damage as diamonds.

The sword hit my hand and it stayed there for a few moments. My opponent himself added chakra to the muscles in his entire body, and as a result, the sword began to slightly damage the skin I wore, making me bleed little by little, blood trickling slowly down from my hand.

The man scoffed and hoisted his sword back up on his shoulders. "You're getting better, Shinji Takuma," he said roughly. His voice had a gravely quality to it, like gravel itself. It was uneven, irregular, but still confident in itself.

I smirked, "Well, that's good to hear, Zabuza Momochi," I said, boisterous in my victory. You see, I was victorious, since if this were a real battle I would have used Shinra Tensei to repel him to the borders of the clearing we were in. I would then prepare a sound barrier breaking elemental dragon that would have devastated the clearing we were in. I would have won in a battle of ninjutsu. But the battle, no, rather a spar, we were in was actually a battle of taijutsu. It was to up my abilities in taijutsu, to the point where I could be able to fight even Zabuza to a standstill. Yet I had a long ways to go. Despite all the work I had made my shadow clones go through, it was futile to fight against Zabuza. He just had too much experience under his belt regarding taijutsu, and compared to me, who had very little, it was monstrous. Zabuza fought and sparred almost every day to get to where he was, using only single days to rest, and sometimes he wouldn't even do that. I admired him for his tenacity, and I hated myself because my cowardice. But still, my bad habit of ducking under any and every thing that approached my face at high speeds was slowly going away, not have shown itself in the spar we had just had. It was an incredible feeling too, having been training in taijutsu almost every day since the very beginning I had asked Zabuza to train me.

Zabuza reached out to me with a hand, silently requesting me to take it to aid me to stand up. Normally I would have taken it and not think more of it, but this was Zabuza, the cruel, heartless individual that died with the pain of knowing that the one he thought of as a son had died. That was horrible, but alas, every event that a man witnesses can change him. Haku's death changed Zabuza for the better, he became more sympathetic, less cock-sure, and less full of himself. He became a better person in general.

I smiled and took the hand, hoisting myself up and standing face to face with Zabuza. We were, curiously, the almost exact same height, only about half an inch difference between the two of us, and sometimes it was difficult to tell who was taller than the other-

Wait a minute...

I wear geta sandals that are about one and a half inch tall. Dammit, that means I'm shorter than Zabuza by about two inches, right? So that makes Zabuza the taller one. Dammit all. Oh well, it ain't the end of the world. No need to think to deeply on it.

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><p>We're home!" I yelled into the recent house we had rented in First District South Rukongai, Hayashi, a lush and wooded, forested, district.<p>

"Welcome home, Shinji-san, Zabuza-sama," Haku said. He was currently wearing a dark green kimono with a beige apron on top. He had yelled from the open kitchen to the left, and was making dinner, with – and I could smell it – bacon. Lovely bacon. Despite not having seen any pigs, bacon was still available in large quantities. Which made me wonder; I hadn't actually seen any animals around. At all. Where in the world do the citizens of all of Rukongai get the food that's available for all to buy? Well, I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I guess I could just kick back and relax. Speaking of which, why was it considered 'kicking back' and relaxing? I didn't get it. Why 'kick' back? I understood the 'back' thing – since I interpreted it as in 'falling backwards onto a chair –, but not the 'kicking' back itself. But that I could think of at a later date.

I plunked myself down heavily on one of the vacant chairs, and yet again I heard a muffled shout coming from the two love birds from upstairs. I sighed deeply as Zabuza took the wooden seat opposite the timbered table. "Those two are at it again," a heavy thump on the floor resounded through the room, "And it's starting to get on my nerves."

Zabuza chuckled good-naturedly. "The way you say it makes it sound as if they're having sex," he said.

I blushed heavily. Now that I think about it, yeah, the way I said it _did_ make it sound as if they were having sexual intercourse. But that would be preposterous! There would be a more romantic relationship between the two if they were doing intimate things! Right? Of course there would be! What was I thinking? Absurd, that. "N-No! They are not!" I spat out, stammering as I did.

Zabuza laughed uproariously, clutching his sides in pain from the laughter heavy laughter. "You should have seen your face right there, Takuma!"

I shook my head and pointed at Zabuza indignantly,"I do not have a funny face!", then I calmed down considerably and got a pondering expression on my face. There was a pause in Zabuza's laughter and he looked at me curiously, "Do I?" I asked myself, tapping my chin in thought.

Zabuza continued to laugh impertinently.

"What's the laughter for, Zabuza-sama?" Haku asked impulsively. He was finished making the bacon nice and crispy, and laid the large dish holding the bacon on the table. Along with the bacon were various other foodstuffs, such as eggs and bread, all on plates.

"Oh, it's just Takuma going about doing god-knows-what," Zabuza gestured with his left hand, "He was just blushing like mad, he was. You should have seen it. It was hilarious."

Haku giggled – I still can't see him, _him_, being anything other than a girl, but I've seen his most private bits, so I shouldn't complain at all – into his hand and said, "I bet," and continued to serve dinner. Then he walked to the stairwell and shouted up at it to Rukia and Renji, "Dinnertime, Renji, Rukia!"

The scuffle died down immediately and I heard two sets of footsteps rushing towards the stairwell and then down it. Renji and Rukia both ran down the stairs, both pushing at the other in order to get the first bite of Haku's surprisingly good cooking – nothing compared to Anko's spaghetti, if you know what I mean – and when they almost reached the end, they jumped, both of them landing on the floor at the same time. "First!" they shouted at the top of their lungs.

Rukia wore a bright blue yukata – a quite expensive looking, too, but it was extremely cheap to make clothing yourself, something Rukia was very good at apparently –, hemmed to her knees, and underneath the yukata she wore a set of black shorts.

Renji, however, wore a dark brown kimono top and a dark grey set of hakama pants, with a wooden sword – which he had been practising furiously with whenever he had time, which was a lot – tied to the belt of his hakama pants.

Both of them were panting and sweating profusely, their hands on their knees displaying exhaustion to the point where they were practically dripping in sweat. I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the odour that they emitted. "When you're done eating you'll go straight and take a bath, right?" I said, expecting them to be compliant and answer to the point. I didn't want to have a pair of brats running around and smelling like sweat. I always was sensitive to bad odours, something I despised, odours. Hated them. No, hate is too strong a word for that. More like disliked it with a great vengeance. Yes, that was more like it. Disliking something with a great vengeance was indeed something I did towards bad odours such as sweat or puke. Putrid smells. Disliked them with a vengeance.

Both of them nodded, neither of them trusting their voices at the moment. I wondered at that moment what they were doing up there whenever there was a scuffle. Could it be that they were training? If so, then why didn't Rukia have a wooden sword? Maybe she just left the wooden sword on the attic. I thought at that moment that I should ask her if she had a wooden sword. After all, why in the world have it a secret?

But alas, I could always ask what that scuffle was about later. Something else came to mind, though. Where was the little boy? I still refused to call him that monster's name, since I considered Madara – curse that name a thousand fold! – a monster. Perhaps I could convince the boy to change his name. Anyway, I could think of convincing him to change his name _after_ I've gotten some food in my stomach; I was getting rather hungry now.

Time to ask where the boy was. "Say," I drawled, "Rukia, Renji," the both of them diverted their attention from stuffing their faces with food to me, both bearing questioning expressions on their young faces, both beckoning. I picked a little on the food on I had put on my dish. "Where's the other squirt?" I had resorted to calling the boy 'squirt' when I was referring to him instead of 'Madara' since the day I brought him in.

Rukia and Renji glanced at each other, an action I didn't miss despite me looking straight at the food on my dish. However, it was not Rukia nor Renji that answered my question. "Oh, he's out to get something for me. Just a quick errand," Haku said.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Shortest chapter I've done by far, but to be honest, I'm in a depression now. That means I'm very, very uninspired to write anything. Therefore, I'm putting the story on hold. That means that there won't be any chapters as long as I'm depressed. It shouldn't take too long though. As soon as I'm not depressed any longer I'll let you know with another chapter.  
>Right now I'm running a bet with Alpenwolf about who Tobi actually is. I'm betting on him actually being Obito, who was saved by Zetsu from being squashed completely or something (unlikely, but better than nothing), and Alpenwolf is guessing that it's Kagami Uchiha, something I think is ridiculous and unlikely. (no offense intended to Alpenwolf, of course)<p> 


	41. He Who Reveals Himself

"What errand is he on?" I asked, seemingly innocently. In truth, I was far more suspicious of him. He had, after all, black hair which he preferred having in a spiky hairstyle. Just like how Madara, the real one, preferred it. I didn't want to be suspicious, but I couldn't help it. But to be honest, I had asked Renji if he had sensed any reiatsu coming from Madara at some point, and Renji had responded in the positive. Meaning that the boy was dead, and probably couldn't talk to begin with. So why was I so suspicious of him? So wary, so apprehensive of him? I would think about it at a later point in time, though. For right then I was consuming precious food of excellent quality.

"Oh, he's just fetching some more bread for me. Nothing special," Haku waved in the air dismissively. I had a sneaking suspicion that Haku knew of my distrustful suspicion of Madara, the boy. I had to be more careful around Haku; it wouldn't do if Haku knew that I didn't trust the boy. Because if he did know he'd do something about it, like sit down and have a talk with me. I didn't want to have a talk with Haku because I knew that he would win no matter what. He was the mother hen of the household, so the consequences of suspecting the Madara boy would be definitely... detrimental. To me, at the very least. Zabuza would listen to Haku no matter what. Renji would side with me, since I practically told him to watch over Madara, but Rukia would side with Haku as well. So taking the democratic way would not work in my favour. Not that it was necessary, because it was very likely I was just thinking things over far too much.

I nodded in response to Haku's answer. It was a satisfying answer, and I honestly did hope that the boy would be coming back safely, and in one piece. Just so I could observe him some more. It would be disadvantageous if Madara, the boy, died without me knowing first hand about it, as well as having a hand in doing so. Not that I would kill him, no, but it was by far the most likely scenario. That if I killed the boy, it'd be in either self defence or because he hurt someone dear to me. Or even as a close friend. Or if he took it up to himself to change the storyline of Bleach without my silent consent.

Speaking of the plot of Bleach, I had tried searching for a way into Seireitei unannounced, without the Shinigami to notice my approach. I had to be silent, both in chakra suppression and in noise of which I would emit when walking. Which brought me to think about the arrival of which I had to do things in. How should I enter Seireitei? Was it even necessary to think about how I should enter? Was it even necessary to worry about me being detected by the reiatsu detectors of the Gotei thirteen? Was it-

"Takuma-san, what are you thinking about?" Rukia said curiously, picking slightly at her delicious food but staring at my frowning face.

I shook my head lightly and smiled gently, "Nothing, Rukia-san," I said reassuringly. I returned to I would have to be extra careful around those more perceptive than others. Which basically meant everyone except Renji. It wouldn't do if Rukia suddenly took a liking to the boy, Madara, and wanted him to stay. No, not at all.

Rukia began picking on her food. "Takuma-san, can I ask you something? No, can I ask all of you something?" she said timidly. Now I wonder why she was being shy all of a sudden. Maybe it had something to do with her being, or becoming, obsessed with Chappy? No, that cannot be it. Or perhaps she really did suspect Madara, the boy, for something. I hoped she did, because that would mean I could reveal my suspicions.

I nodded reassuringly, along with Haku. Zabuza just grunted and chugged on some rice wine, or sake, as some are rather fond of calling it. "Well... how should I put this?" Rukia anxiously asked herself. "I don't really know if I will offend any of you when I ask you this, but..." suddenly she got all quiet and picked on her food some more. Then she looked at us with a determined expression. "I don't mean anything by it, but I don't trust Madara."

…

Well, that's surprising. Rukia didn't trust Madara, just like how Renji and I did. This would prove to be highly successful for me. I could convince Zabuza and Haku to-

"You too, huh?" Zabuza asked Rukia.

Well, if Zabuza was distrustful of Madara, the boy, then-

Haku sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You as well, Zabuza-sama, Renji?" then he looked at me with an expression of having given up. "Let me guess. You too, Takuma-san?"

I chuckled nervously and scratched the back of my head. This worked out very well. There was not a need for me to worry about the abandonment I would have to make these people go through if I left. I didn't trust the boy, Madara. He seemed too good to be true. From the time he came into the household to that point where we were discussing him he had seemed too friendly, despite not being able to talk. He always agreed to help around, and he always seemed to want to carry out duties.

Whenever he did those things, usually as a favour to Haku, he had a nasty look in his eye.

I didn't trust that look in his eye. It seemed like his eyes, for a moment, would turn red, with three dots circling the pupil. No, not three dots. Three comma like abstract symbols. Tomoe. The Sharingan. Sometimes, if the duty was strenuous, the Sharingan look would revert to what I assumed to be Madara's Mangekyo Sharingan. It was definitely a Mangekyo Sharingan, though, for it was totally changed, it didn't have three tomoe, like the usual Sharingan. And it was red and black in colour. But before I could properly confirm that is was Madara's Mangekyo Sharingan it was gone. But since I had the Rinnegan, I knew that what I saw was real, was true. That it was a real Mangekyo Sharingan.

Because there was a chakra flow going through the eyes at that point. Rinnegan eyes can see chakra flows, thus enabling me to see that the boy was using chakra.

That could only mean one thing. That boy's soul had somehow been sealed away. And it was very probable that Madara, the boy, was Madara, the man. I believed that it was a physical transformation. With enough chakra one could do anything short of back and forward in time.

Haku groaned. "Why in the world are you suspecting Madara? Is it the name? Is it the look in his eyes when I ask him to go fetch something for me? Is it-"

Before Haku could go all mother hen on us I held up a hand to stop him from talking any longer. It was a little annoying, to be honest, but I could definitely live with it. Haku did stop talking when I held up my hand. Which was good, I supposed. I sighed, "You see, Haku, for me, it's the name. When I was alive the man who called himself Madara had killed the love of my life," at that Haku, Renji and Rukia all winced. Zabuza just raised an eyebrow at me. He was probably suspicious of anyone, including me, of lying. "Or at least he was responsible of doing so. For that, I don't trust that boy. He also has a mean look in his eyes when you ask for any particularly hard task, like he thinks he's better-"

Suddenly I cut myself off. I sensed a chakra signature approaching the house we were occupying. And it was ridiculously huge. Compared to Zabuza, that is. Compared to me, it was a mere fly ready to be bashed cleanly. "We have company," I said. Rukia and Renji just looked at me weirdly, like they couldn't believe that I sensed something, since they were the only ones who had reiatsu out of all of us.

Haku's and Zabuza's eyes widened considerably, sensing the enormous chakra signature as well. Haku immediately turned to Rukia and Renji, "Go upstairs and wait for us there! Go! Now!" he commanded them.

While Rukia and Renji were stunned, Zabuza quickly grabbed his huge sword that was by the door leading to the main street and rushed outside. I was just on his cleaver holding tail.

All of a sudden lightning and thunder rained down on the village we were in. Rain began to pelt the surprised folk of the village in First District, South Rukongai. Rain was rare in Soul Society, so people began to storm into whatever shelter there was available. Soon after Haku, who was wearing a cloak to cover for the rain, entered the main street we were in.

People were in a panic, sort of, and covered themselves with whatever they could, be it newspapers, bags, or thick clothing, running left and right to enter buildings for cover from the rain. The buildings all began to get chock full of people, since there were lots of them in the main street at that point. However, no one dared enter the house where we came from, since we had built quite the reputation.

That was all beneath my attention, though.

What was worthy of my attention was the man who was clad in black clothing, had red armour on, whose spiky black hair was reaching all the way to his thighs. He was wearing thick black gloves on his hands, as well as black ninja sandals. His skin colour was pale white. His arms were crossed. His eyes were red with a black design on them.

The Mangekyo Sharingan. Specifically Madara Uchiha's Mangekyo Sharingan.

"Madara Uchiha," I whispered, anger beginning to seep into my voice, pure silver chakra was whipping across the main street, reaching slowly for Madara's form. Madara was walking slowly towards Zabuza, Haku and me, the silver chakra whips retreating towards my body the closer he came. His chakra was evil, it felt evil, more evil than that of the Nine Tailed Fox's. And it was enormous enough to push back my own chakra. Madara began to smirk, thinking that he was gaining the upper hand in a fight of chakra capacity.

It should be noted that I wasn't even trying to overwhelm him with my silver coloured chakra. I was too focused on reigning in my rage, to make sure I wasn't about to get overwhelmed in hand to hand combat and lose the vital battle. I knew that Madara Uchiha was a specialist in just about everything because of his disgusting Sharingan, so the only way to beat him would be to surprise him. With ninjutsu. I sure hoped that my chakra was up to snuff because it was sure to be tested to the extremes.

"Shinji Takuma," Madara said, and he was quite smugly smirking at me, Zabuza and Haku. "What a pleasant surprise, seeing you here," he continued, "If it wasn't for you, _he_ would not have gained the Rinnegan. For that, I thank you," and then he proceeded to bow slightly, his arms still crossed. He persisted talking, "And who might you two be, hm? I recognize that sword. That's the Kubikiribocho. The cleaver that belongs to the Village Hidden in the Mist. Am I correct, or am I wrong?"

Zabuza responded to Madara's taunt, "You're right. But that knowledge won't matter, because you're about to die. Again."

Madara persevered, smirking once again smugly, "And what about you?" he turned his attention to Haku. "What about you? Your chakra amount is insignificant, your bloodline is nothing compared to the Sharingan. It is nothing compared to the Rinnegan, either. It is nothing compared-"

I cut him off, waving my hand around dismissively, "Blah blah blah, can't you just shut the fuck up, Madara?" Madara began to glare at me. He was without a doubt offended by my cutting him off like that. "It doesn't matter whether or not Haku's bloodline is lower than the Sharingan or not," quickly I turned to Haku. He was glaring at me with scorn, "No offence intended of course, I think it's a pretty cool bloodline," then I turned back to Madara, "What matters is," then I dropped the genjutsu I had had on me the whole time I had been in Soul Society, one that I was curious as to why it had been working on the residents of Soul Society, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. I showed him my set of Rinnegan.

His glare intensified. "So you still do have the Rinnegan. I thought you had your 'friends' crush it before your death," he began. "But I believe that not even _you_ can overcome greed, huh?" Then he smiled slightly, tilting his head forwards, shadowing his changing eyes. "The world, even this one, is hypocritical in its sense of peace. There are still children weeping over their dead parents, whose blood they have on their hands... whose life they have taken." He looked up, looking quite ominous. His eyes had morphed into the Rinnegan, something I had expected him to do, but I guess that when you're angry you usually don't really suppress your powers.

I grinned and let out a small chuckle. "Sounds like you say that out of personal experience, Uchiha." He was about to say something, probably something along the lines of, 'Yes, I have killed my mother and my father', but I honestly didn't care if he had. He could have eaten his own shoe, and I would only have looked at him and laughed at his face. I carelessly and dismissively waved a hand out to signify that I didn't care about him and his life. "But I don't give a rat's ass about your life, Uchiha. You should read a children's book on morality, though. It'd be good for your mentality," I jokingly added.

Zabuza palmed his face, groaning at my stupid taunts. "Really?" Zabuza asked, "Really? That's the best you've got?" He looked at me sceptically, like I was quite the slow... _slow_... person.

Haku palmed his own face as well, but had a wide smile on his face. Probably because of the sheer stupidity of my taunts.

I looked back and forth between Zabuza and Haku. "W-What? They're not that dumb, are they? I mean... OK, I give, I give." Then I turned serious. "But we don't have time for jokes or silly plays. Right now one of the strongest shinobi to have ever lived since the Sage of the Six Paths stands before us, and he won't go down quietly. Won't it go down in the records if we defeat said shinobi in battle? Now who can say that they've defeated Madara Uchiha and lived to tell about it? Not very many, I'd imagine. There's only the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and he died not soon after-"

"This is not a history lesson, Shinji Takuma!" Madara angrily shouted. Aha, you're sensitive over your defeat over your loss to the First Hokage, are you? Suddenly his chakra spiked to dangerously high levels and all three of us got into our respective combat stances, Zabuza jumping to the right while Haku jumped to the left. I was the most stationary card our team could pull, so when we had discussed battle tactics as a pastime, we had decided that I would be stationary, Haku would take the left flank, Zabuza the right flank while I would just shower the rest with mass area of attack jutsu. I had both the stamina and the chakra potency for the tactic to work as it was designated to.

Madara's and my Susanoo flared into existence at the same time. Mine had retained its silver colour through all these years, its single face clad in a beautiful head armour piece that was based on the traditional Japanese culture, as well as the rest of the armour the giant Susanoo was clad in. Three tails swished into being at the base of my glowing Susanoo's spine. One arm sprouted from my Susanoo's left arm socket while two, joined at the elbow, erupted in a violent shower of silver chakra from my right arm socket. Each hand, grotesquely enough, had six fingers in total, five main fingers and one thumb. The left arm was covered in beads, something I had come to call the Beads of Shiranui, from knowledge I believed to be instinctively given to me. I didn't know the properties of the beads, but I wasn't about to judge the Beads' usefulness. They looked pretty anyway. In the left hand itself was the Yata Mirror shield, capable of deflecting any elemental attack, no matter which element, be it fire, water, lightning, wind or earth.

In the right most hand was the Sword of Totsuka. It was covered in the black flames of Amaterasu, as was the other sword that was in the last hand. That sword was a scimitar, or something similar to one. Most people would be careful when up against a Susanoo, and whenever Zabuza and I fought in a spar full out, I always came up top when I could use the Susanoo. It wasn't because of the Yata Mirror or the Sword of Totsuka, or even the Susanoo's toughness that could hold up on most anything that won my battles against Zabuza. No, the Yata Mirror blocked _elemental_ _attacks_, not physical ones, and neither jutsu that did no one any harm. The Sword of Totsuka, while powerful, could not cut through anything, and as I've discovered on accident at one point, cannot seal anything any longer, something I attributed to the Sword of Totsuka sealing souls into the afterlife, or something I could wonder about at a later date. And it had never been a tool for cutting to begin with. It was not like the Sword of Kusanagi that was said to be able to cut through anything short of a Jinchuuriki cloak.

That's where my Susanoo compensated by giving me a scimitar. I called the scimitar Tsumugari.

The Tsumugari had the ability to absorb anything that was made out of chakra, almost like the Rinnegan's power to absorb chakra based jutsu. But the Tsumugari was different. The Rinnegan absorbed moulded chakra, like the Samehada did. The Tsumugari did it to such an effect that as long as it was exposed to chakra, any chakra in the air, moulded or not, was immediately transferred to my own stores of chakra. That included killer intent. In fact, the more killer intent that my Tsumugari absorbed the more it sucked out of the one channelling the killer intent. Example; in a spar with Zabuza, he released as much killer intent – which was a fuck-ton – as he could. Something that would have brought any normal man to their knees crying like small babies. But I had my Susanoo on, with the Tsumugari on my closest six fingered hand. I didn't feel the killer intent, but somehow, leaking all that killer intent for even a full minute, something Zabuza, with me as an opponent, was forced to do very often in our spars to halt my movements a little, left him drained. Quite a lot, actually. We discovered through a lot of experimenting that it was actually the new addition that did that. The Tsumugari was truly a dangerous weapon to be on the business end of. Not only that, when out, the Tsumugari would completely neutralize the effectiveness of killing intent. It absorbed even my own killing intent.

Not even done yet. It also had the capability to cut through virtually anything. Zabuza's cleaver included.

Never mind all that nice jazz about my fancy clad silver glowing Susanoo. It was time to observe Madara Uchiha's Susanoo. I had never seen its colour before.

As I expected, it was completely red in colour. A deep maroon, actually. It had two faces, each face on the opposite side of the head. There were four arms. Each hand, like my own Susanoo, had six skeletal fingers at first. Then muscles made out of chakra began to cover the entire body. Then intimidating armour began to appear, then the three horns on the faces. One on the forehead of the left face pointing upwards, like a unicorn, and then on the right where where there was one on each side of the chin, pointing downwards. Which was three horns in total. Basically, all you needed to know about Madara Uchiha's Susanoo was that it was scary.

But it wasn't scary enough to waver my determination to kill him; he was responsible for Anko-chan's death, and I'd be damned if I didn't get some form of revenge.

"Let us get this show on the road, shall we, Takuma?" Madara taunted. But I wouldn't take the bait, oh no. I would stall, I would draw out the fight. I knew for a fact that I had more chakra than any human should be allowed to have, thus meaning that in a battle of attrition, in any battle of attrition, I'd win without a doubt. And the Susanoo was incredibly taxing to the user, no matter who you were. With two exceptions. Me, of course, and the Sage of the Six Paths.

I said nothing for a few moments, my face a completely blank slate, before I finally let a smirk gain its place on my mouth. "Why," I drawled, "Of course, Uchiha." I looked around us, at the buildings, spotting quite a few unbelieving stares through the many windows from the two to three storey tall buildings that were on both sides of the street. The end of the street could be seen on both sides. Behind me was Seireitei, directly behind me actually. Behind Madara were mountains, and a lot of them. They were, of course, very far behind him, at the very end of the town, but the mountains held a lot of significance in showcasing that when it came to chakra control and knowledge of said legendary energy, it was Madara who was superior. However, since Seireitei was behind me, it signified power and will to fight evil to the last man standing. I was ready to kill evil, to crush it beneath overwhelming power and will, just to let others live in peace.

Of course, the symbolism was totally missed by me. I didn't care much for it.

I immediately began to think of battle plans. Madara was dangerous, that much was as obvious as a slap to the face, but it wasn't like he couldn't be defeated. Everyone had their weak points, even the perfect defence had one. I should know, I had the Susanoo too. The fight between Danzo and Sasuke showed that if provided enough suction, the Susanoo's defence could be somewhat altered in such a way that it would expose the user of the Susanoo. In Madara's brief fight against Gaara and Naruto, it showed that with light enough manipulated chakra saturated sand it would be possible to pull the user out of the Susanoo's 'perfect' defence. And when A, the Fourth Raikage, punched the Susanoo's fully reinforced ribcage it cracked to the point where A's punch hit Madara.

In short, the Susanoo was not the perfect defence. No defence was perfect, no attack was perfect, nothing was perfect.

Time to prove that to Madara.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I am soooo sorry for being so late in the update! There truly is no acceptable excuse for me not updating for such a long time. I'm truly, however, sorry. I would write a long letter of apology to each and every one of my reviewers personally, but I feel that it would make you simply waste time reading excuses and stuff like that instead of reading glorious fan fiction.

By the way, Saints Row The Third came out, as well as Skyrim. And I got sick. Am sick, actually. Taking antibiotics right now to take care of my infection of my lungs and blood. (it is probable that my lungs are infected) But those are mere excuses! You deserve more! You deserve another chapter full of action! Of pent up anger and frustration of me not writing anything for you to be released into the world! And don't worry, I promise I will start writing next chapter immediately!

HTM out!


	42. The Fight

"Why won't we take this somewhere else, Madara?" I asked politely, not wanting to sound as if rage was the only emotion I was capable of. I tended to do that when a fucking criminal of life was in front of me.

"Because I don't want to," he answered, politely as well.

Obnoxious little...!

I'd teach him to imitate me!

Madara grinned evilly, while Zabuza got in from behind, his Kubikiribocho prepared to strike, and Haku got on one of the buildings and began throwing various senbon at Madara. Each of the senbon hit the chakra that made up the Susanoo, not one penetrated the defence in order to hit Madara. Not a single senbon.

Zabuza rose his Kubikiribocho with a great heave, cleaving at the Susanoo. Miraculously, it pushed Madara's Susanoo and even cracked it slightly. I guessed at that moment correctly that Zabuza must have added a lot of chakra through his arms and released the pent up stored chakra to really damage the Susanoo. Zabuza wasn't about to get exhausted from repeated use of that, though, but best he not do it too often. He might be the Demon of the Hidden Mist, but he wasn't exactly the killer of Yagura, was he now? Zabuza and Haku didn't have the chakra capacity or the skill in ninjutsu to deal with Madara, and the three of us combined – Haku, Zabuza and I – would be far from enough to deal with Madara in taijutsu. Genjutsu was _not_ an option due to Madara's Sharingan and his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. So ninjutsu would be the only answer to kill Madara.

But first I needed to know something.

"Hey, 'genius'!" I tauntingly said to Madara. That definitely got his attention, seeing as I said 'genius' with heavy sarcasm. Madara was always considered a genius amongst geniuses, whose adventures were told of even in Water Country's history books that I had chosen to read, albeit very reluctantly. I never cared much for history, so I didn't even go to that willingly. But Mei, bless her soul and all that, demanded that I read up on the history of Water Country. Did I regret doing such a thing? Did I regret reading up on Water Country's bloody history? Hell no! It was freaking epic. There was even an account of the First Hokage having a hand in the First Mizukage's death, albeit that hand was preventative, not additive. That particular history book was adamant in letting the reader know that, as it had mentioned it over twenty seven times that it was not the First Hokage's fault that the First Mizukage died. Anyway, I continued, seeing as I had the 'genius'' attention. "Where's the boy that went and got Haku something?" Madara smirked widely before I grinned like a mad man, stopping Madara's smirk in its tracks, "Let me guess, you're him, right?"

Madara closed his eyes and chuckled. "Indeed. You're correct in your assumption, Takuma. The boy whose voice was quiet and non-existent was indeed me." When he opened his eyes again they were the Rinnegan.

Just as I had expected.

He still possessed the Rinnegan. But from my own knowledge of the Rinnegan it took certain talents to perfect the Rinnegan's abilities.

For example, in canon, right before I ended up in the Naruto world, Madara couldn't absorb Mei's, bless her soul yet again, lava jutsu. But he could absorb natured chakra. My theory on that was that he wasn't at the skill level yet where he could absorb bloodline chakra, seeing as he didn't just absorb the lava from Mei, bless her soul once again.

My skill at the Rinnegan was at a higher level than that of Madara's, seeing as I had always could be able to practically devour anything, as long as it was saturated with chakra.

Time for Madara to knock on Death's door.

Zabuza got ready to cleave again on Madara's tough defence, but his Susanoo quickly put a finger through the Kubikiribocho's hole in the edge of the cleaver, effectively stopping the sword dead in its tracks. Funnily enough it made Zabuza's face crash into the sword's edge, breaking, or at least bloodying his nose, seeing as there was a small trail of blood going from Zabuza's nose to his chin.

Haku appeared on top of another house filled with people, who had taken cover from the hard rain and were looking at the spectacle with very wide eyes, and began to throw senbon covered in extremely powerful paper bombs made by yours truly at Madara's Susanoo. Despite the explosions maybe cracking Madara's Susanoo slightly, the damages were definitely not seen, seeing as the breakages were repairing themselves almost immediately.

I let my chakra flow freely throughout my body all the while this was happening, disabling my Susanoo so that my killer intent would have an effect on Madara. My silver Susanoo dissipated into nothingness slowly, the weapons going first and the ribs last. My chakra flew freely throughout my entire body. Then finally, I changed the nature of the pure chakra into lightning natured chakra, making my entire body spark with such intensity that it seemed as if lightning itself was dancing across my skin. My short kept hair took a wild, spiky haired look, making me look all the more intimidating. The time it would take for me to process a thought would be inhumanely fast. Add that to the fact that I was adding earth natured chakra to my muscles in order to strengthen them to the point where even the Third Raikage would be green with envy, and I was a pretty good melee fighter.

In an extreme burst of speed and killer intent that made even Zabuza pause in fear I sped forwards towards Madara.

He didn't even have time to raise his arms to defend himself. Because I broke the fucking sound barrier.

I was sure the blast of the sound barrier cracking could be heard all the way to Seireitei. They would probably send a team to investigate, but I didn't care. I was far too in the moment to care for such pitifully small inconveniences.

His Susanoo's fully armoured ribs cracked under the strain of my close-fisted punch. My arm penetrated his entire layer of defence, practically drilling through the blood coloured defence layers that were desperately trying to defend its wielder.

My punch his Madara's red coloured armour, shattered it, drove through the thick black material that was his clothing, tore right through it and hit directly on his solar plexus.

He didn't stand a fucking chance surviving such a massive punch. All the pent up rage I had was gone in that single punch, all the hatred I had for the man who arranged the Moon Eye plan and wanted it to happen was let go on that single punch. That one punch ended one life, and ended my hatred for both Madara and Tobi.

I had fully killed Madara.

And the joy that I felt for that moment was a joy could only be compared by finding a true love.

Madara's body was still for a moment. Two moments. Three moments. A blink. Madara looked down onto his chest.

Or rather lack of.

Finally Madara collapsed into a bloody heap of bones and meat.

And the result was a massively long ditch. It was perhaps three feet wide, but several miles long. It even reached the mountains. And hollowed them out.

I was done with Madara and his schemes. My only connection to the Naruto world now was Zabuza, Haku, my memories and that elderly Hyuuga couple that no longer possessed chakra.

Life was good.

I went back into the house, Zabuza and Haku followed, stunned beyond words by my rage filled punch. Immediately after I entered the house Rukia and Renji entered the living room that also served as the entrance to the house. They began asking mindless questions. Their mouths moved, yet no comprehensible word came out. They seemed extremely worried about me. Why were they that? I was fine. I felt better than fine. I felt great! I had never felt better! Not even when I had eaten Anko's awesome and very tasty hot steamy pasta.

Why was the floor banging on my precious, and now bloody, nose?

* * *

><p>The first thing I felt when I woke up again was the pain. My head was pounding like an insane masonry worker was on one too many happy pills and saw my head as a stone that he had specifically prepared for a masterpiece of stone work. My spine felt like a fucking pin cushion of an extremely unskilled mad scientist. But funny enough, that was the only pain I was feeling.<p>

I groaned in pain and put a hand on my head. I heard someone shout something, but I couldn't discern what it was. It was like some kind of rubbish I couldn't understand. At least for the moment. My head was in too much pain to understand a word. I opened my eyes and sure enough, there was by far too much light entering through my optical nerves. So I closed them again. And I just noticed that I felt very thirsty. And for some reason I felt very, very comfortable.

"Water," I said weakly. My voice felt extremely unused, like it was grating into gravel and sand at the same time. It also felt as if my throat was suddenly made out of sand paper as thirsty as I was.

"Bring him water! Now!" someone called someone else. Finally it seemed my brain wasn't in as much pain now so that I could understand what others were saying. Thank goodness for that. The voice sounded eerily familiar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

My brain suddenly spiked in pain and I took my other hand to my head, clenching tightly on my head in hopes to ease the migraine I was feeling.

Suddenly I felt something cold splash on my lips. My brain quickly realized that it was some much needed water and both my hands leapt from my head to the glass containing the water. I didn't even feel the warm hand that I had enveloped in order to hold the water filled glass. My lips sucked onto the edge of the glass hungrily, like someone who hadn't felt the smooth touch of water in years. Finally, after what had seemed like glorious and blissful ages, but had actually been two seconds, the glass was empty and I was still feeling as thirsty as a camel, though I was feeling eternally grateful of the giver of water. May he or she live a happy life.

"G-Get him another glass of water..." the person, whom I identified as female, judging from the tone of her voice. I heard footsteps leaving the room we were in, and after a few moments arrived back with what I presumed was another glass of water, as the glass I had been holding had been pried off from my steel grip with a surprising amount of strength, and another glass, filled with delightful water, ready for my drinking.

And I happily drank. I had tried opening my eyes again, but they had yet to adjust to the light of the little hut we were in. I judged that it was a hut, because there was no sound coming from the outside of the hut, so unless it was at night, I'd not be surprised if it was in a forest in a good day.

Once again, another glass, this time a lot larger than the previous two, met my lips, and I greedily drank it all. Finally I was not as thirsty as a certain beige coloured animal.

Yet again I opened my eyes, and this time my eye sight was significantly better. I could detect the colours of the room. And as I predicted, it was day. That was why it had been so bright. The room was small, but definitely not the smallest living space I had seen before. There weren't any pictures of anyone or anything on the walls. At least not from what I could tell. There was a window to my left, and it was wide open, showing me and the woman on my right side that it was a bright and colourful day. The wooden walls were quite brown and of poor quality, but otherwise looked sturdier than the common hut. Somehow it managed that despite being slightly rotten. But oh well, I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

But if you think I focused on any of that then you were absolutely wrong. No, I focused on the woman that was at my immediate right.

She had purple hair. A very attractive face. She wore a beige long coat. Underneath it she wore a mesh shirt, with no apparent bra to cover up. She had a bust less intelligent girls would kill to have. An orange skirt. Brown boots with metal coverings on them.

It was Anko.

But something was wrong with the image. Her eyes, they were yellow, with a slitted pupil. Reminiscent of Orochimaru. She even had small purple markings around her eyes, but less opaque than that wretched snake's.

"A-Anko?" I stammered out. I mean, why wouldn't I stammer? I just met the love of my life again, and I didn't care how or why her eyes were different – probably a side effect from getting the Cursed Seal, but who honestly cared about that? It just made her that more snake-like –, since I wasn't exactly a person who looked a gift horse in the mouth. But hot damn, she hadn't changed at all in the some fifty years we'd been separated! Granted, neither had I, but I had attributed it to the air being made out of spiritual particles, and not air. Or some other physical nonsense like that.

However, her reaction was far from what I expected. She didn't jump for joy, hugging the life out of me. She didn't look at me as if I had grown a second head and just said, 'Well, who else, you wimp?'. Not a single thing could have prepared me for the sheer... apathy, I guess you could call it... I got from Anko at that moment.

"Huh?" she dumbly answered.

I quickly thought up millions of theories, each as unlikely as the next. There was one theory that was likely, and that was time had been swinging backwards in this dimension as opposed to the Naruto dimension. There were literally thousands, if not millions, if not countless, of possibilities. And as said, they were as unlikely as the last. So I won't even tell you how unlikely they are. How insane, how inane and childish, hopeful, they were.

"I-It's me, Anko-chan. Don't you recognize me? I'm Shinji, Shinji Takuma! The one who removed your Cursed Seal! The one who-"

I was rudely cut off by Anko, whose eyebrow rose slightly in suspicion, who said, "Who the fuck is this Anko you keep moaning about?"

...

Well, shit.

There could be the fact that since she had died and not been sealed off that her memories had not returned to her. It could also be that her brain had simply had a hard wired, major reset, transferring from one dimension to the next perhaps tends to do that. The dimensional transfer deity must have set up a rule that whomever is sent from one dimension to the next without aid has their brain reset. Or something along those lines.

But I still couldn't believe that Anko-chan wouldn't remember me! Love should last even through dimensions, no matter what!

So I desperately and childishly clung to the fiction that she might just remember me. "Don't you remember me, Anko-chan?" I nervously asked.

"No, I fucking don't, now stop calling me that! My name is not 'Anko', it's Kinako! And for god's sakes, man, try to remember that!" she grabbed my shoulders and shook me wildly, as if trying to make me remember her name.

My brain, however, wouldn't accept that. Anko-chan called herself Kinako now? Wasn't Kinako some type of dango? I guess her taste buds at least survived the dimensional transfer from the Naruto universe to the Bleach universe.

"But-"

Then I got a hard slap on my cheek. And it was from an unknown assailant. My head was thrown to the right from the hard slap. I was sure that it left an angry red imprint on my left cheek. Immediately I brought up a hand to rub the offending mark on my cheek. It had damn hurt, so I began to look for the slapper, while ferociously scowling. It didn't take long for me to find the only other person in the room.

The person was obviously male, by the look of the facial structure. He had short dark blond hair. The boy had heterochromia, because the right eye was bright blue while the left was beige brown. He was short, without any doubt a child.

A child.

A _fucking_ child?

That could only be one person I could think of that was a child. And that would be my child. Not good if he _fucking_ slapped me!

I shook my head. No, probably not my child. I was overreacting. I needed to cool down, and that slap had helped me cool down at least a little bit. But alas, I needed information on who was who, otherwise I'd go insane like the time when I almost killed Kakuzu, Hidan, Akahime and Kazue on a whim. It wouldn't do if I suddenly made the Rukongai's population diminish any more than it already had. But now I needed information about how long I had been out. Hopefully it was still before the initiation of the original Bleach series. I couldn't have been out _that_ long. There were still a hundred years before I got to the series' beginning.

So I decided to play it cool for now. "Thanks," I said after a moment of silence after the thunderclap that was the slap, "I think I needed that," and I believed I did. Because slaps always help cool one down. Queue mental sigh.

"Good," the boy said. I was determined that it was a boy now, since the voice was actually fairly deep, for a child and all that. "Now that you have regained your senses, how about we start at the beginning?" he quite intelligently asked.

I pointed at him with an intentionally shaky finger, "You're smart," my random comment seemed to take Kinako and the boy aback. And why wouldn't it? The boy had just slapped my face, and then I called him smart? Maybe I was getting insane already. "But yeah, let's start at the beginning," I put a hand on my chest and bowed slightly, "My name is Shinji Takuma. Pleasure to meet you two."

The boy and Anko – no, Kinako – sighed in unison. Then Anko – Kinako! – began, "As you know, my name is Kinako. I don't have a surname. The guy is Goma," also a type of dango. Huh, like mother like son, huh? "No surname either. Now, how did you come to Soul Society?"

Now that was a sudden question. Guess that to seem as polite as possible I would have to answer all their questions. But I believed at that moment that since Anko wasn't really Anko anymore that I would have to keep my chakra a secret unless strictly necessary. "I arrived with a bang. That is all you need to know about it."

An-, no Kinako scowled. Then she sighed, "Fine, if you don't want us to know then so be it. Now, do you have any questions?"

Finally, I could get to know where Haku and Zabuza were. They hadn't barged into the room yet, something I only expected Zabuza to do, though. "Yeah. How long have I been out?"

Strangely enough, Goma and Kinako looked at each other warily, as if they had something they didn't want to tell me. Well, I wanted them to know I was prepared for anything-

"Eighty years."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> OK, seriously, the fight between Madara and Shinji's crew must have been disappointing, but since it was a battle of power, I believe that it would be incredibly short but devastating nonetheless. There, I said it. But anyway, there's more to everything than there seems to be. Don't worry! :D  
>Also, thank you all for worrying over my sickness! I am taking penicillin against my lungblood infection, so I should be alright in a few weeks.


	43. A Very, Very Long Sleep

…

Eighty years?

Eighty _fucking_ years?

Well, talk about a coma. I've been been out cold for eighty years, so what could have possibly happened while I've been out? The only way to truly know what had happened while I was out was to simply ask around. My first bet was to ask A– Kinako about what had happened while I had been out for the count.

"So," I drawled after the long and awkward silence that had followed the revelation. "What has happened while I've been out?" I asked after yet another long and awkward pause.

Kinako – it's getting quite easier calling her that now, seeing as I should see her as a completely different person now – just sighed in what seemed to be relief. "You're taking it easier than what we had come to expect," then she turned to Goma and said to him, "Go tell them he's awake now." Goma curtly nodded and turned around to exit the room. He walked down a flight of stairs, judging from the descending noise. "Now, what has happened while you've been out, you ask?"

"Yeah."

"Well, where to start. That guy you fought some eighty years ago apparently poisoned you somehow with foreign energy, something your friends call 'chakra'. Don't know what that is, never heard of it before then, but screw that. They said that this 'Madara' guy had somehow poisoned you with too evil 'chakra' nonsense or something. I don't know shit about that, though. Anyway, so two of your friends decided it's best to drop you off after carrying you for over seventy nine years, and they decided to drop you here. I don't know where they are now, but they sure as hell haven't stuck around this District-"

Kinako was interrupted by a loud crash and a lot of baritone yells coming from downstairs. The door was quickly flung open and Goma rushed in and slammed the door shut, as if he were in a panic. And I believed correctly that he was, seeing as both Kinako's and Goma's faces were set in a unified terrified expression. "They're here," Goma told Kinako in a rush. Suddenly we heard footsteps come from downstairs, rushing towards the door with great haste.

So I believed at that moment that apparently the two, Kinako and Goma, were in trouble with some form of gang members of the lower numbers of Rukongai. I had tons of questions for Kinako, but I believed I should deal with these guys first.

I flexed my muscles a bit. I was confident that I could take them out with ninjutsu. A quick chakra scan on my system told me that my chakra capacity had not deteriorated in the slightest while I had been gone, and flexing my muscles proved that I was not a victim of muscle atrophy for some reason, despite having been out for nearly, if not more than eighty years. I could think of reasons for my not having muscle atrophy and my chakra reserves not having diminished at all later. A quick and educated guess was that since I was in Soul Society I wouldn't age past the date of which I had died.

But screw theories and hypothesises, I was going to come into the world of the living – or dead, seeing as everyone in Soul Society was dead – with an enormous and glorious bang! As in, I'd be kicking ass first thing after getting up from bed. Now who can say they can do that and say it with a straight face? I could, and for that, I was happy.

I quickly stepped up and idly noted I was still in my casual clothing, dark brown kimono and beige geta sandals. Weird, but it was things I wouldn't think about for a long time, if I knew myself even a little bit.

I looked at Kinako and asked her seriously, "Who are they?"

"Soul Gangers. Don't ask about the name, they're not much for people mocking their name," then she looked at me hastily, "I'll give you the quick version," she stood up and looked at the door fearfully as Goma removed himself from the door's immediate vicinity, "We owe them big amounts of money, and we were supposed to pay them back yesterday. We didn't."

Just as Kinako finished her sentence the door was broken down with a big hand, a hand that almost seemed as big as a cement brick. The arm it was attached to was incredibly muscled, it seemed like there were muscles on muscles, as well muscled as the man's arms were. He certainly looked like he was at least on steroids. His face wasn't very pretty, though. It seemed like his face had been repeatedly mashed against a wall as flat as it was, almost like that of a pug's. His nose was disproportionally huge, larger than both of his eyes combined. And don't let me get started on his mouth. Jeez, the teeth were as yellow as urine. He hadn't washed his teeth since the day he was born, had he? He wore a dark grey and thoroughly sweated through tank top. His upper body was so big and muscled that it almost diminished the attention his legs had. His legs were small, disproportionally so, and were covered in sweaty dark blue jeans. All in all, he was disgusting. And an eyesore. I didn't like eyesores. I would have to take out the soul trash, then.

Behind the big guy was a lanky man. Compared to the previous door basher, this guy seemed almost constantly angry. He had the face of a horse, almost, and his fingers were extremely long, webbed, I'd call them even. He wore the exact same clothing as the big guy, just very small compared to his. A dark grey tank top and a pair of dark blue jeans. Seemed like that was the uniform for at least those two. Or it should show the bond the two had. I didn't know at that moment, and to be honest, I didn't care.

The big guy cracked his knuckles, "Now, who's up for some pounding?" His tone was unsurprisingly deep and baritone.

In response Kinako and Goma got immediately to their knees and started to pathetically beg for their lives. "Please spare our lives! We'll do anything for you if you just don't kill us!" they both said.

How pathetic. I didn't know that Anko – no, Kinako now. She could no longer be Anko if she were begging someone for her and Goma's life. She could not be the Anko I loved anymore – was like that. No, I couldn't believe it. These guys had to be terminated, though.

Both of the men looked like they were about to take serious advantage of the situation – as in, rape Kinako for their own pleasure – but then they noticed that I wasn't begging for my life. They noticed that I was in fact glaring at them something fierce.

"Huh?" the lanky man said dumbly as he pushed past the muscled guy. He got up to my face, nose to nose, and then put a finger on my chest, pushing me slightly with his pathetically small but very long finger. "Why aren't you down on the ground and shuffling at our feet, huh?"

I was angry. I couldn't explain the anger, but if I had to take a guess, it would be because of the revelation that Kinako could not be Anko-chan. Not if she were begging for her life like she was. The Anko I knew would not be grovelling at someone's feet like some lower peasant. No, she would be kicking ass and chewing bubble gum. With a shotgun, and blow the fuck out of everyone. Well, maybe not a shotgun, more like an oblong kunai or something.

But I was angry at the moment. So instead of politely telling those people to knock it off I slowly and deliberately put a hand on the lanky man's chest. He looked down and once again 'intelligently' said, "Huh?" Something told me it was a verbal tic of his.

But he didn't have a chance to say anything else before I channelled a monstrous amount of earth chakra to my entire being and pushed with all my might. The earth chakra acted as something that made my muscles denser, able to pack tonnes more behind my push.

The lanky man hit the brute and went _through_ the absolute giant of a man, through his chest cavity, through his ribs, spreading blood, bone and gore everywhere. The lanky man continued his flight through the house's far wall, as well as the next house. And the next. And the next. And the next. And the next. And the – well, you get the idea. He flew for a very long distance, knocking out everything in his path.

The brute of a man looked down into the hole that was once his chest, and then looked up again. "Ow," he said. Then he comically fell downwards, and otherwise died.

After that I just began to walk down the stairs and out the building. I looked around and there was a mass panic. People were running like mad, trying to find the cause of the destruction that the lanky man had caused.

Good.

It was fun to watch mass hysteria.

* * *

><p>As I quickly found out, I was back in South Rukongai, District Seventy Eight. Dammit, that would mean I would have to walk all the way to Seireitei again. And it would be soon before the start of the Invasion of Soul Society by Ichigo Kurosaki and company.<p>

But what should I do once I decided to threaten the timeline? I should definitely do something to change it, because, hell, why not? I had massive amounts of power to use, so why not use it? It wasn't like I could use it to protect anyone anymore, seeing as I had no one to love anymore. Goma wouldn't recognize me as his father, if what I presumed was correct, and Kinako was not going to realize that in the previous life she had been Anko Mitarashi, my has-been lover. But oh well. I guess that that's just how life was. It was unfair, and there was nothing I could do to change that unfairness. But I guessed that I could do something to help someone else to make their lives easier. Perhaps I could give Ichigo and company some major heads-ups, like preparing them for battles, sparring with them to show them that no, they were not strong. Shooting off energy blasts, no matter how large they were, did not determine how good one was in battle. Neither how fast one was. If they couldn't control their power, then it would all be for naught. I believed in control on power. That was the only way to truly defeat opponents stronger than you; have better control over your own power than they have. And no one had better control over the same amount of power as I had. Not Zabuza, not Haku, not Naruto. No one.

I quickly made my way back to the First District of South Rukongai. It took me the better part of a week to reach the First District of South Rukongai at ninja speeds, but I didn't stop there. I took it one step further and went to West Rukongai. From my knowledge that would be where Ichigo and company would first land. Then I'd be the one to take care of Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, then I'd blast the door to kingdom come.

Just because I could.

Then I'd deal with Gin, preferably using non-lethal methods, since he was a good guy in the end and all that. Then I'd block the path for Ichigo and company to enter. I'd throw in some kind of lie, stating that they'd have to find another way in, and then hint on going to Kukaku Shiba instead of trying their way in through one of the main gates. It'd be so much fun, messing with the timeline. And then I'd somehow get into the good graces of the Shinigami so I could end up in the battle for Karakura. It'd be so awesome, and maybe I'd even get to meet everyone's favourite villain, Sosuke Aizen. It'd be very much fun, showing him that no, he was not all powerful. I would beat the snot out of him, and then wipe his body in said snot. Alright, that was disgusting, so I'll change the subject.

But what after? I didn't care much for the Fullbring arc, so I guess that I'd have to kill Aizen while he would still be killable. Ichigo would probably try the Final Getsuga Tensho anyway, just to use it, but I'd definitely not let him use it. He was really powerful before he used the Final Getsuga Tensho, so I would kick his ass before he would be able to use it.

So it was decided what I would do. I would force Ichigo and company to use Kukaku Shiba's cannon to force their way into Seireitei, thus creating a diversion for me to infiltrate Seireitei and kill Aizen while he could still be killed.

To be ironic, I would try killing him with his own sword.

But if it wasn't achievable, something I'd expect it to be, then no matter. I'd just kill him with a Bansho Ten'in fist to the face combo. Just like how I did to Deidara, just with more juice behind it. Or perhaps I could use the black flames of Amaterasu to neutralize him. Yeah, I think I'd do that instead of trying to kill him with his own sword.

But I'd have to do it without anyone knowing about it. That, or kill him while he was about to turn on Soul Society. Or just kill him in the battle for Karakura-

Of course I'd have to kill him during the battle for Karakura! Without Aizen alive, the battle for Karakura wouldn't ever happen. How stupid and forgetful of me.

* * *

><p>I approached Seireitei, despite not feeling as secure about the stone walls not falling on me and all that. I didn't want to be squashed into human paste, thank you very much.<p>

I neared the indentations where it marked the separation between Rukongai and Seireitei. Sure enough, the walls hadn't appeared just yet. Thank goodness for that. Just as I got an inch to the indentation I immediately took a step back in preparation for the stone walls to fall down. I looked up.

Nope.

No walls falling down.

To be extra sure that I wouldn't be mashed together by the stone walls, I did a quick Ram seal and did a quick shunshin to appear on the other side of the indentation that marked the difference between Rukongai and Seireitei.

Nope.

No walls falling down.

Excellent. Now to find shelter.

I did find it quickly, in the form of a warehouse. I identified it as such by the boxes scattered around the warehouse. I quickly found myself something to sleep on that was secluded from immediate sight from opening the door. The thing I was sleeping on was uncomfortable – a few boxes as a mattress and then a rolled up blanket as a pillow, as well as several other blankets working as a comforter wasn't exactly comfortable – but I didn't expect it to be much, really.

* * *

><p>I didn't have to sleep for long before I heard a series of massive crashes and thunks that rocked the entire warehouse. I quickly shook off the blankets and went outside the warehouse. Sure enough, the walls and gates had appeared. That meant that there were some form of invaders trying to get into Seireitei. Now to wait until the gates opened. I hastily made my way to the gate, and despite there being Shinigami milling about they didn't seem to take notice of me. They probably thought I was some random Seireitei citizen noble that had a penchant for kimonos. Well, the penchant for kimonos was correct, but the Seireitei citizen thing wasn't. They didn't even stop to notice that I had no reiatsu or reiryoku to speak of. No one noticed that I was just casually strolling past everything and everyone. Sure, someone glanced in my general direction, so that verified that I could still be seen, but no one seemed to be too worried over the fact that they couldn't sense an ounce of reiatsu from me. Not even that silver haired guy with a white haori that, just like me, casually strolled towards the main gate.<p>

Wait...

Silver haired guy with a white haori? Of course, Gin. I looked behind me to confirm my suspicions, and sure enough, the haori had a big three on the back of it. Or at least the Japanese three, that is. If it were a western three, then I'd be very, very confused.

I looked around. Nope, not a single soul in sight after Gin had approached the gate. He stood there for a few minutes before the gate slowly but surely rose. A giant hand slowly pushed its way through the opening in order to make it rise some more. The giant hand obviously belonged to Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, unless I had screwed up big time. But that was as unlikely as Anko crying over spilt dango. She'd only be as pissed as a very pissed off snake. And let me tell you, they can get very pissed.

Then the gate took up some speed. The normal happenings happened. Jidanbo turned his head around and told Ichigo and company to go on through the door. Then Jidanbo turned his head around to face Gin Ichimaru. Jidanbo practically pissed his pants. He screamed at Ichigo and company to run for their lives, and then Ichigo stupidly charged ahead, thinking he could challenge a captain of Gin Ichimaru's level. They clashed swords for only three seconds and Gin managed to beat him back out Seireitei's boundaries. Then Gin cut off Jidanbo's arm, spewing blood everywhere. Still Jidanbo held up the gate, which was surprising in and of itself. He finally let go of the gate since he didn't have the strength to continuously hold the gate up. He backed away, and the gate fell down onto the ground again with a heavy thump. Then Gin just stood there, looking at the gate for a few minutes. Not what I expected, but hey, he's Gin. He never does anything you expect, does he now? Nope, he doesn't. I mean, I didn't expect him to betray Aizen when he did. Though I have to say that I did laugh and clap when he did. It was totally unexpected. But he should have betrayed him sooner when Aizen was still killable. But I wasn't about to judge. He knew Aizen's secret, and now that I knew, I could spread it around more so that the Gotei thirteen wouldn't be absolutely hopeless against them.

Anyway, so Gin finally turned around and when he did he finally noticed me. Or I think he noticed me, I couldn't tell because of his squinting eyes and grinning mouth. But his eyebrows sure did rise.

"Well well well, what do we have here?" he said in his usual cheery voice. "A complete void of reiatsu. That can only mean one thing," Gin opened his eyes, showing his teal eyes. Well, I didn't expect him to open his eyes, but as soon as he opened them he closed them again.

"That can only mean what?" I hesitantly asked. I subtly took a taijutsu stance. I didn't want to be helpless in the case of Gin attacking me with his sword. But I highly doubted that he would use even Shikai to try and defeat me, much less Bankai. But you'd never know, so I took a prepared stance, tensing up my muscles in preparation for an attack from behind. He'd definitely attack from behind, trying to knock me out with a chop to the neck. I'd stop him from doing so. That's a given.

"That can only mean you have chakra and not reiatsu," he cheerfully said.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Uh, another cliffhanger! You must hate those now, huh?  
>Well, I'm still sick, but I'm marginally better now. I'm still taking penicillin to cure my lung and blood infection, so I'll be good in a few. :)<p> 


	44. Captured

Shit.

I was in a pinch. How could Gin know about chakra? If Gin knew about it then that could mean that the entirety of Seireitei knew about chakra. And it would not be good if, by some random cause or reason, Zabuza and Haku were captured by Gotei thirteen. If they had, god knows what the Twelfth Division would do to them to test out their various abilities. What horrors were Zabuza and Haku subjected to if they had been captured, or god forbid, willingly went to Seireitei to be captured.

Thousands of hypothesises milled about in my brain like a train was driving around in Tokyo. Or something along those lines.

Gin must have seen my surprise, because he chuckled a little bit. "Now now," he said in his usual drawled manner, "There's no need for any of that. Those two were treated as honorary guests, you know. It was one of their conditions if the Twelfth Division wanted to examine them."

My shoulders lowered and I sighed in relief of the revelation that Zabuza and Haku were at least comfortable, wherever they were.

Wait a minute. All of a sudden my muscles tensed up and I began to channel chakra throughout my entire body, hardening the skin like an Arrancar's Hierro. I began to glare at Gin.

He said 'Were treated'. That could mean tons of things. They could be dead, for all I knew. I had to ask – no, _demand_ – their location, and their status. Should they be alright I wouldn't go on a killing spree. If they weren't alright... well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty. "Where are they?" I demanded of Gin.

Gin's grin widened – didn't know how that was possible, but it did – and he looked around. Then he reached up with his hand and snapped with his fingers. All of a sudden the entire place was filled with nondescript Shinigami with their swords out and ready. "They're not dead, if that's what you're asking," Gin said cheerfully. "But they aren't really up for questioning. Let's put it that way," he added, almost as an afterthought.

I looked around me. One, two, four, eight, sixteen, thirty two, sixty four... sixty five Shinigami, not counting Gin Ichimaru, seeing as he was far beyond these guys' level, and could without a doubt beat them all without a second thought. It would be a tough battle, if the strain the nondescript Shinigami had on their expressions were anything to go by. They probably raised their reiatsu to the maximum, thinking I would be a tough battle.

Gin held up a hand and said loudly – and cheerfully – to the gathered Shinigami that surrounded me, "That won't do at all, everyone. The chakra monsters don't feel reiatsu-"

"Chakra monsters?" I interrupted Gin. Chakra monsters? How dare he declare me a chakra monster? Well, granted, I was a veritable chakra monster, my chakra reserves taken into consideration. But I was far from a monster. I would show them... I would show them that chakra was a force to be fully reckoned with. I would show them that chakra should not be underestimated, even if Shinigami were faster than 'chakra monsters'.

"How dare you interrupt Captain Ichimaru? We will punish you for existing, chakra monster!" some random Shinigami guy to my immediate left said loudly. His shout was followed by loud cheering from the rest of the Shinigami.

I continued to channel chakra throughout my entire body, just this time I channelled both lightning chakra and wind chakra through my body, both enhancing my body's speed and my brain's reaction time to the supernatural. In fact, I was channelling so much lightning and wind chakra through my body that the wind picked up – violently – and my body was surrounded by lightning. The Shinigami all were startled by the sudden wind. Even Gin, though his grin remained steadfast. "I'll show you a real chakra monster," I said malevolently.

Then suddenly I disappeared. In not even a blink of an eye I dug my fist into the stomach of the Shinigami that had shouted at me. I was channelling marvellous amounts of wind chakra through my entire body, enhancing its speed beyond what a regular shunpo can do.

The results were very satisfying.

The man flew into the high wall, through it, and through the building behind the wall, and stopped at the wall behind the building.

And I didn't stop just because the Shinigami were all looking startled at the result of my punch. I went to the Shinigami directly opposite the surrounding ring of Shinigami, and punched straight into his gut. I didn't want to kill anyone, fearing for my life that my blood lust might act up again, so I pulled a little on the punch. Only a little. The Shinigami was flung towards the wall, and when he hit the wall it got hairline cracks all around it.

This continued for a few seconds, where Gin would merely blink and half of his forces were down for the count. Then Gin decided to act once there were only about three Shinigami left.

He used shunpo to arrive right in front of one of the last Shinigami that was left standing and conscious, and used his arm to block my otherwise devastating punch. Sure, Gin's thin arm almost snapped, but he had reinforced his arm with his own power. Therefore his arm, when in contact with my chakra enhanced punch, didn't snap. Gin, however, was forced into the female Shinigami that he protected and pushed them both into the wall. But essentially Gin had saved the consciousness of at least three of his forces.

"Saving people, Gin?" I said harshly, "I thought you only saved Rangiku's life," I added. I knew it was undeserving that I said that, but I wasn't about to complain to the gods above about my power over people.

Gin's grin faltered heavily as he experienced intense pain going through his arm. "I-I didn't know you had this much power. The other two don't have this much," he said. Strange, he stammered at the beginning of his sentence. Perhaps it was the pain of almost breaking bones that he had in his arm. I, frankly speaking, didn't care. Maybe I could try and see if killing intent worked on them. I knew I still had it in me to produce fake killing intent. I believed that if it affected everything and everyone, I'd be a veritable monster on the battlefield.

Therefore, I let loose on my killing intent, not letting up for a single moment.

Gin's grin finally faltered completely and he quickly turned around and took hold of the female nondescript Shinigami and used shunpo to get away from me. His shunpo lead him all the way to the other side of the clearing of buildings. He put the paralysed Shinigami down and then he turned towards me, a heavy glare set at me. "My my," he said, not a single trace of cheerfulness in his voice, "Eager to kill me, are you?"

"No," I said, a smug smirk adorning my expression. I surprised Gin when he was taken slightly aback by my answer to his rhetorical question. "I am not eager to kill anyone. I am simply faking killing intent. Though I have to say, I am glad to see that it still works on people, despite being spiritual in nature."

I was pretty sure that Gin had flared his reiatsu previously, because Captains began to arrive. I saw black hair, a smooth face and a female figure. Though said smooth face was dead set in a glare at me. Retsu Unohana, without a doubt, seeing as the black hair was set in a frontal braid.

Three other captains arrived as well. One was a giant, easily over nine feet in height, and covered his entire face with some sort of mask. Sajin Komamura.

Another had a white something covering his eyes, and had a dark skin colour. Obviously Kaname Tousen.

And the third had brown hair, quite messy actually, brown eyes with glasses covering them. Sosuke Aizen. The traitor.

He was smiling like a smiling devil. Now I saw that Gin was also grinning again, like he was sure of himself that his side would win against me. Ha, as if. I would wipe the floor with each and every single Captain. But I couldn't very well kill them. That wouldn't put me in their good graces.

No, I think the best course of action would be to surrender. That would give them a sense of authority over me. As I have said, it was best to get into Gotei thirteen's good graces right up till the battle for Karakura.

Slowly and deliberately I put my hands up in the air. Gin's grin widened some more.

Next thing I knew I saw black.

* * *

><p>"You sure took your sweet time to try and get to us," a gruff and familiar voice said lowly.<p>

"Now now, Zabuza-sama, he hasn't had a good entry to Seireitei, so it is obvious that he shouldn't be here to begin with. He obviously didn't know where we were and what his objective should be," a more feminine voice said, this one familiar as well. It was one I hadn't heard from for over eighty years.

My head was pounding like mad, but apply some water natured chakra to it and bam! Instant hangover cure.

I looked around, and I found that I was in a poorly maintained cell with a Shinigami guard at the end of the hall. Had to be the Maggot's Nest, then. It couldn't be anywhere else, really. But now I had to identify the sources of the voices. "Zabuza? Haku?" I cautiously asked the darkness that was my prison cell.

"Ah, I hear you're awake, Takuma-san," the same familiar feminine voice said.

"Haku?" I asked the darkness, "Is that you?"

"Yes, Takuma-san, it's me. The other one is Zabuza-sama. I do hope you haven't forgotten us in the year where we haven't been together," Haku mirthfully said.

I approached the bars and looked through them. Sure enough, opposite my cell were two cells split off in the middle by concrete. "So, Takuma, remember me?" I heard someone else say. Obviously it had to be Zabuza. His voice sounded too familiar for it to be anyone else.

"Will you stop talking? I'm trying to sleep here," another feminine voice said. It was one I was completely unidentified with.

"Sure, sure, whatever," Zabuza said. "Be quiet when she's trying to sleep, Takuma. She needs the sleep."

"Who are you talking about?" I asked both of the males. I still couldn't really get over the fact that Haku was male, but hey, at least it'd identify him as one.

"Someone by the name of Konan. She isn't really a happy individual, but she says that she too has chakra," Zabuza whispered to me through the bars of his individual cell.

…

I stared at Zabuza, who was in the other cell opposite me. Konan? Konan was here? Then... my favourite female character from Naruto was here? Could this day get any better? I broke up with Anko, which wasn't really the best thing that could happen, but she couldn't remember me to begin with, so it wasn't really that much of a break-up. It was obvious that I was now at the start of the invasion of Seireitei by Ichigo and company. I had reunited with Haku and Zabuza, and I had the chance to meet my favourite female character from the Naruto universe! This day couldn't get any better!

"Konan?" I called to her. Judging from the shuffling and the annoyed noise she had just made she was in a cell beside mine, to the right. "Konan? Are you there?"

"Yes, I am here," I heard her say irritably. I wonder why she was irritable now. She probably had a life changing scenario or something. Death tended to do that to one. "Now," she pushed her face through the bars, just like I had done. The bars were spaced widely enough for heads to easily slip through, as I had done. She looked at me and said, "What do you... want..."

Her tone broke up a little bit, and her eyes widened. "Takuma?" she whispered.

Thank goodness she remembered me. Otherwise I'd have to reintroduce myself. And I didn't want to reintroduce myself. I find it boring. "Yeah! The one and only," I said cheerfully. "And are you Konan? As in, the friend of Yahiko's and Nagato's?"

Then she widened her eyes in surprise and began to look around her own cell for some reason or other. I wasn't about to complain, though, because soon she pressed her face through the bars again. "How do you know that?" she asked. She was frowning at me, but not glaring. It was probably a frown of suspicion. I mean, who wouldn't be suspicious if they were in her situation?

"I come from the same universe as you-"

I was interrupted by Konan, "Universe? You mean we're in a whole other universe?"

"Yes," I answered. "We are in the universe of what I would call 'Bleach'," I saw that both Haku and Zabuza were surprised of my statement as well as Konan. She opened her mouth, "Let me explain," I interrupted her before she could say anything. Before either Zabuza or Haku could say anything, actually.

I sighed, "What I will explain to you, Zabuza and Haku as well," I briefly averted my eyes from Konan's beautiful grey eyes to Zabuza and Haku, then I turned my attention to Konan again, "Must not be spread around, alright?" I saw the three of them nod in response. "Well, I do not hail from this universe. That much has to be obvious, though, seeing as I, like you three, have chakra. However, neither do I hail from the universe you three come from." This took them aback, making them blink in surprise. I continued, "Where I come from, this universe, as well as the universe you three came from..."

I stopped to gather my thoughts. How should I best explain this without repercussions? Well, best just be blunt with this, eh? "Where I come from, this universe, your universe as well... it's all manga. It's all fiction"

As expected it surprised all three of them. Zabuza was the first to gather his thoughts, though. "What do you mean, 'it's all manga'? I'm here, I exist, I have thoughts, I feel things! How can you prove that we're from fiction?" he said with rage in his gruff voice.

"Calm down, Zabuza-sama," Haku gracefully said, "I'm sure Takuma-san is truthful in his statements," then he turned to glare at me, "Right?"

I noticed that Konan was just looking at me with wide eyes.

I nodded with fervour, "Of course. Now let me explain fully. Do you all know the multi universe theory? No? Well, don't worry. In my universe, technology is more prominent than any other universe that their manga illustrate. Usually the manga, when they're futuristic, are impossible. Such as mechanical monsters running around with great speeds. That is purely unachievable in my universe. But that doesn't mean one can dream. However, in my universe we don't have any kind of supernatural power, like chakra or reiryoku. That means that humankind from my universe has to make do with technology. We are far more advanced than any other fictive universe thought out by most fantastic writers. One of them being Masashi Kishimoto. He made the Naruto universe."

"Naruto universe?" Zabuza said incredulously.

"Yes, Naruto universe. I am definitely sure that all of you have noticed that everyone Naruto has contact with changes their lives, right? He changed your life, Zabuza, Haku, Konan. He changed Nagato's beliefs, didn't he? After Nagato destroyed Konoha and fought Naruto with his six paths of Pain, right? Well, the reason Naruto always wins without any kind of major strengths is because he is the main character of the series that has taken his namesake."

Haku perceptively asked, "What has that to do with that multi universe theory you mentioned?"

I nodded, "Well, you see, from my universe, we have a theory that says that there is an unlimited number of universes. Right now there could be another universe where I am still battling the Captains of Gotei thirteen. But that is irrelevant. What the theory says is that there are an infinite number of universes, meaning that I could have travelled through dimensions and entered the Naruto universe and have gained chakra through some unknown means. I don't know how, or why, but I have gained massive reserves of chakra as well as the Rinnegan. It could also be that the Sage of the Six paths has been a dimension traveller, just like me, and is actually Masashi Kishimoto himself, but I wouldn't know. Those are all theories anyway, nothing for us to think about. Anyway, what I am saying is, I have somehow crossed dimensions, and travelled to the Naruto universe. When I died I must have thought about the Bleach universe or something, and thus received a god's blessing or some other shit like that, and landed in the Bleach universe. Don't ask me why this dimension is called Bleach, I don't know why."

Haku put a hand on his forehead, "This is very much to take in, Takuma-san. I'm not sure that I can-"

Haku was interrupted by Konan, "So that means that Nagato and Yahiko can be alive at this moment?"

I looked at Konan. And nodded. "However, they are most likely in either the World of the Living or Hueco Mundo, the land of Hollows," then I looked sternly at everyone. "You do know what a Hollow is, right?"

Zabuza and Haku nodded a little, while Konan shook her head. "No, I don't know what a Hollow is. Care to explain it?"

I smiled benevolently at my favourite female character from the Naruto universe. "Of course. But first I'll have to explain the basics of the circle of life and death."

"Of course."

And then I went on to explain to Konan, my favourite female character of all, right besides Tia Harribel actually, the workings of the Samsara.

"And that's what a Hollow and Plus is."

Konan was staring at me with fascination. "Amazing. To think that the Bleach universe would be so deep..."

I barked out a small laughter, "Ha! Not as deep and complex as the Naruto universe! Trust me, there's a reason for why the Naruto manga is the top manga of my generation."

Then I heard footsteps and a few claps.

"Good show, Takuma-san, good show," a cheery voice said. "Good show indeed, explaining the way of things. I wouldn't have been able to word it better myself, in fact." I looked to the left, to where the entrance was, and saw...

Sosuke Aizen.

Shit.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Aaaah, I'm on a roll here! I'm getting much better thanks to your well wishes! Thanks, guys! :D


	45. Free Like The Bird

**Author's Note:** I have set up a poll. Please vote in it, seeing as it will affect the future of this fiction.

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><p>"How much did you hear?" I demanded, glaring at Aizen.<p>

"My my, why so hostile?" he responded, his hands still held up as if he had just clapped. Which he had, by the way.

If he had heard all of it then I would be veritably fucked. Aizen would without a doubt remake his plans to include us chakra people, and then he'd somehow kidnap us and make us do something that he'd want us to do or some random shit like that. I'd definitely not want that to happen, no thank you. "Because you're an asshole, that's why," I said with great hostility in my voice.

Once of Aizen's eyebrows rose with that sentence. Even Zabuza and Haku, perhaps even Konan, were taken aback by my apparent hostility at Aizen. After a short moment of silence, Aizen said, "Well, I believe that I am unwelcome here, then. Perhaps you would want-"

But he didn't finish his sentence before I set out as much killing intent at him specifically as I could. "How much did you hear?" I asked again. "If you don't tell me, the first thing I'll do when I get out of here is to kill you. And I will thoroughly enjoy it," I added. My killing intent was fake, of course. I didn't really want to kill Aizen, neither would I want to inflict debilitating injuries upon him. At least not yet. My intent was actually to scare him into submission, so that he would tell me how much he had heard. If he had heard it all, then I would be fucked, as well as Zabuza, Haku, and Konan. I didn't want them to be fucked. Well, no, it wasn't really any of my business if they were fucked or not, but I wouldn't want them to be in a bad situation. Well, maybe I would want to have some business in wanting Konan-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

Anyway, I didn't let up any of my killing intent on Aizen, and thankfully, I was directing it all at him specifically. If I had just let loose and not aimed at anyone I would be sure that even Zabuza would be on the floor and puking his guts out. But I wasn't an expert at controlling killing intent, therefore some must have leaked out and affected Konan, Zabuza and Haku. I could tell because they were staring wide eyed at me as the bars I was holding bent under the pressure I was administering to them. The bending of the metal bars were heard by all in the immediate vicinity, without a doubt.

Aizen was breathing heavily as he looked at me with wide opened eyes. Finally he just turned around and walked away. And I was sure that his casual smirk was not present on his face.

After a long moment of silence I said, "That," and I paused a little. What was that? Why did I produce fake killing intent on Aizen? Perhaps he would report this to the Captain Commander, Yamamoto. And then there would a Captains' meeting, and then I'd be researched by that immoral villainous Captain, Mayuri Kurotsuchi. I didn't want to be researched like a lab rat, thank you very much. So the only opportunity would be to be at that Captains' meeting and somehow convince everyone that I was some kind of true fortune teller. That would be beneficial, and not too shabby, everything considered. It wouldn't be impossible, seeing as the creator of Bleach, Kubo Tite, wasn't really up for setting complex rules for his characters to follow.

But first, I would have to share my plan with the rest of the gang once Aizen was out of hearing range.

Finally, Aizen exited the hall way and I turned immediately to the rest of the chakra gang. "Alright, listen up," I said sternly. Zabuza and Haku both nodded, not wanting to think that I was their enemy. Which I wasn't, by the way. Konan was just looking at me with her beautiful grey eyes. Wait... I called her beautiful? Well, screw it, I thought she was beautiful, and I wasn't about to complain about something as trivial as beauty. Not that beauty was trivial, I just shouldn't think about that at that moment. Anyway, "I have a plan. The Captains of Gotei thirteen will probably have a Captains' meeting because of the killing intent I just submitted to Aizen. That was the Captain that was here just now, by the way. I will break us all out of here and then you will hide somewhere. I will go straight to the Captains' meeting and try and convince them that we are not here for harm. While there, I will pose as a fortune teller."

"And pray tell," Zabuza said sceptically, "How will you do that?"

"Haven't you been listening, Zabuza?" Konan came to my defence. "Where he comes from, this world is a fictional world of manga. Therefore he will know what will happen in the future," Konan turned her head to me, "Right?" she said, narrowing her eyes but not really glaring. Or at least I was hoping she wasn't glaring at me.

I nodded curtly. "Of course. Now, I will not reveal that Aizen, Gin and Tousen are traitors, but I will imply something along the lines of that. Now, are you prepared to initiate the plan? Remember, the only thing you have to do is to find a place to hide. But please, for my benefit, be somewhere in Seireitei. You can flare your chakra as much as you want, they won't detect you. But for safety's sake, I will leave you with a shadow clone. If you happen to be in trouble, then my shadow clone will help you as much as it can. If it dispels, don't worry, I'll be there as quickly as I can. Do you understand the plan?" I asked them finally.

Konan and Haku nodded, while Zabuza just grunted. "Yes. Hide and wait for you. You will help us as much as possible, should we meet trouble we cannot defuse by talking," Haku explained.

I nodded, once again curtly. "Good. Now, let's initiate the plan. Please back away from your cell doors," I pleasantly asked them with a smile.

Zabuza, Haku and Konan backed away from their cell doors and their backs hit the walls opposite the cell doors. Then I wove through a few hand seals. Dog, Boar, Rat, Rabbit, then I slammed my left hand on the ground. "Earth Release, Spikes of the Earth!" I whispered, as the ground suddenly shook a little bit and spikes, made out of earth and other materials, protruded from the ground on my side of the cell. They went in between the cell bars and expanded in width once they reached past the cell bars. They continuously expanded, until finally, with a creaking noise, the metal bars were disconnected from their concrete holdings. Then the spikes of earth retracted themselves so that we could walk out of our cells.

"Alright, let's go," I said with heavy determination marring my voice.

We all approached the entrance to the hallway and saw a pair of Shinigami standing guard outside the hallway's entrance. They hadn't heard the noise, apparently, otherwise they would have investigated it. It totally worked in our favour, however. They were facing away from the hallway's entrance, therefore they didn't see us. I knocked them out by doing a quick chop to a specific point on their necks. I didn't let the Shinigami guards hit the deck, however. I grabbed hold of the back of their scruffs and threw them into the cell hallway. That way it would look like they had simply taken a break, unless someone were to investigate.

"Was that necessary, Takuma-san?" Haku asked, as he turned his head to see if the two Shinigami guards were alright. Well, it was Haku, after all. He thought that all life was precious. I wouldn't judge that way of thinking, no. It was a wanted way of thinking, what with the pessimism that pervaded the existence of humanity.

"Yes, Haku. Don't worry, I just knocked them out," I answered with a smile directed at Haku. Zabuza grunted and Konan was emotionless about the affair of me just knocking two Shinigami out by chopping at their neck. "Well, what are you waiting for?" I said. "Go!"

I created a shadow clone and then they all used shunshin to disappear from the area. I sensed that they were all going in one direction. I saw through my clone's eyes that, yes, they were all heading the same direction; towards a building that looked like something of a warehouse. Probably abandoned, but I wasn't about to say anything.

I jumped onto the walls of Seireitei and looked around. There were many buildings around, that was for sure. I couldn't quite identify where each division was.

The only way to skilfully do that was to create a few thousand shadow clones.

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><p>It didn't take long for my shadow clones to find the First Division's meeting hall. While the walls and ways of Seireitei was confusing as hell, a quick jump into the air made the maze that was Seireitei much less confusing. My shadow clones were, of course, under a genjutsu that made them invisible to the naked eye. And it wasn't like the Shinigami could detect my presence anyway.<p>

I had discovered ages ago that by channelling chakra through the eyes of my clones I could disable the ability to see through their eyes. It really helped when I had lots of shadow clones on standby or if I was in disguise and didn't need the ability.

When I found the meeting hall I saw Toshiro Hitsugaya enter the Captains' meeting hall. If he entered that building I was sure it was the place. Then I just had to enter it. With a bang, of course. Otherwise it would be boring.

I quickly disabled the Shinigami that were standing guard by the giant doors of the Captains' meeting hall the same way I had disabled the other two Shinigami guards. A quick chop to a specific point to the neck and they were down for the count. This time I let them hit the floor, and their weapons, those curious forks that served no purpose other than to look intimidating – and they failed at that – hit the floor with a loud clattering noise. It announced that I had arrived. It was fun to cause mass hysteria, but I wasn't totally sure that the Captains of the Gotei thirteen would be very hysteric, seeing as they were _Captains_ and all that.

I put my hands on the gigantic doors to the Captains' meeting hall and slowly opened them. The light from the sun probably obscured my form, making my entrance look that much more epic. It was fun to seem epic, that was for sure. Anyway, so the Captains all looked at me, and I was sure that they were not suppressing any of their reiatsu, flaring it, spiking it. It was probably as a reaction, but I didn't feel any of it. I was, after all, a 'chakra monster'. Well, yeah, I was a chakra monster. I had the chakra of a Tailed Beast. That had to count as something, right?

I saw Yamamoto first. His eyes were still the same, squinting ones that I had come to know from the first . He probably suspected that I would arrive. It wouldn't surprise me if he were suspecting me. However, the rest of the Captains sure were surprised to see me. I smirked smugly at that notion. I looked around as I walked into the two lines that made up the Captains. Sure enough, each and every Captain was there. Even Ukitake, the sickly man whose hair was white. Then there was Mayuri Kurotsuchi, the psychotic Twelfth Division's Captain. Kenpachi Zaraki, the battle loving Captain of Eleventh Division. Then there was the icy Captain of Tenth Division, Toshiro Hitsugaya. Then there was Kaname Tousen, the Captain of Ninth Division. Shunsui Kyoraku, Eighth Division Captain. Sajin Komamura, Seventh Division's Captain. Byakuya Kuchiki, the Sixth Division's Captain. Sosuke Aizen, the traitorous Captain of Fifth Division. Retsu Unohana, the Fourth Division's Captain. Then there was Gin Ichimaru, the Captain of Third Division. Soi Fon, the Second Division's Captain. And last, but definitely not least, the First Division's Captain Commander of the Gotei thirteen, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto.

They were all standing in their respective positions, staring at me with wide eyes. Well, except Yamamoto. He was just looking at me through his squinting eyes.

"So you have come?" Yamamoto said with his gruff voice when I was in the middle of the line of Captains. I could tell the rest of the captains were pushing their reiatsu on me, but I felt nothing. No reiatsu was pushing me down. Nothing was felt by me. The Captains all seemed to remember that I was a 'chakra monster', so therefore they let up their pressure, all of them scowling at different levels at me. Though Kenpachi was looking at me with battle lust, and Kurotsuchi was staring at me with a calculative glance.

"Well, why not?" I said mirthfully. It was fun to watch the Captains all change their expressions in the corner of my Rinnegan eyes. They weren't even questioning why my eyes were different. They truly were stupid. "Besides," I looked around as I said the next words that seemed to take all the Captains, except Yamamoto, aback. "I'm not here to harm any of you, despite knowing I could kill each and every single one of you at a whim."

"That you cannot. You cannot kill us all. We will stop you," Byakuya arrogantly said. Well, I took it as arrogance, but seeing as he was glaring at me, I would take it as a yes, he was arrogant. To a certain extent, of course. But still.

"Oh yeah?" I said smugly, turning my head towards him. He was to my immediate right anyway, so it wasn't that difficult. "Well, that's not what I'm here for anyway," I looked back at Yamamoto, who was frowning slightly. "I'm here to give you all information, despite all the bad things you've done to us 'chakra monsters'," queue air quotes with my fingers.

"What information could that be?" Ukitake asked me politely and curiously. He was without a doubt curious about the notion that I had information that they didn't know anything about. I had tons of information that they didn't know of. Such as the coming invasion of Ichigo and company.

I smiled at Ukitake. "Ah, Jyuushiro Ukitake," my knowing his name made some of the Captains tense their muscles, such as Hitsugaya, Komamura, Tousen, Aizen and Soi Fon. "You're quite a friendly one," I said.

Ukitake smiled at me, "Why thank you."

"You're welcome," I smiled back. Then I turned back to the crowd of Captains. "But yes, what information do I have that could benefit the Gotei thirteen? Well, there is the fact that there is a conspiracy going on right now," oh yes, the conspiracy. I saw that most of the Captains tensed up their muscles, except Yamamoto, of course.

"What kind of conspiracy would that be?" Aizen asked. Ah, avert the attention from you by asking a question. Nice move there, Aizen. But it won't be the thing that will completely remove you from suspicions. Oh no, you're Aizen. You look too friendly to be unsuspecting.

I smirked at Aizen, "Someone in this very room, who is not me, is associating themselves with Hollows, claiming to be the one to bring true balance between Hollows and Shinigami."

That brought a shout of outrage from Soi Fon, Komamura, Tousen, Hitsugaya and Kurotsuchi, as well as Ukitake. "What? Who is it?" Ukitake demanded loudly, which made him cough slightly into his hand.

I turned to Ukitake again, "Someone in this room. That's all you're going to get until he or she will reveal themselves. Until then, you're going to be left speculating."

"Who is it?" Aizen demanded, glaring at me, putting one hand on his sword. Oh, trying to desperately avert any attention from yourself, are you Aizen?

I smirked and slowly and deliberately scratched my chin, as well as looking up, as a show of debating with myself. "Well, let's just say that his or her plans will succeed in the beginning. And that the battle for the town is where he or she will fail, and die," as I finished my sentence I looked straight into Aizen's eyes. Someone must have picked up on my trail. Someone should have.

No one did.

For all their alleged intellect, they sure are stupid, those Captains.

I sighed, "I will, however, tell you that this person who associates themselves with the Hollows only wants to bring a more efficient balance to the world, at the sacrifice of a town. Something I would consider noble, had the invasion of the town not been less... murderous. If you haven't guessed yet," I looked around the wide eyes of the Captains. "I'm a teller of the future. I know some things of the future that you don't."

"Such as what?" Yamamoto demanded knowledge from me. It was knowledge he would very soon get.

I smirked at Yamamoto. "Such as the invasion of five people will happen in less than a minute-"

And at that very moment, the siren sounded. Talk about saved by the bell, huh? Well, not really by a bell, but nonetheless.

Yamamoto slammed his staff down in order to draw the Captains' attention to him. He did so successfully, of course.

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I know the ending isn't anything special, but would you rather have a cliffhanger than an ending that makes a small amount of sense? :D  
>Also, I want to thank everyone for their 'get-well' reviews they've been sending me, especially nartog. I would have replied to you specifically through a PM, but I guess that replying through an author's note isn't that bad. I also want to thank Anon for actually criticizing my story. I need feedback on what I am doing wrong so I can fix it! Please do tell me what I am doing wrong story wise if you don't have anything to say to me about grammar or spelling. Because I just KNOW I am doing something wrong.<br>Also, **I have set up a poll! Please vote in it! It will influence the future of this fiction!**


	46. A New Home

**The poll is still going strong!**

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><p>Once the attention of the Captains was all focused on the Captain Commander, the Captain Commander took a step forward. "All Captains and Lieutenants are allowed to have their Zanpakuto on their person until the end of the invasion. Release of Shikai and Bankai are permitted under extreme circumstances," the Captain Commander told the Captains of Gotei thirteen.<p>

I looked around as the Captains all made their way to the entrance, or exit in this case, of the Captains' meeting hall. Aizen, however, took a stop right next to me. He was, curiously enough, tall enough to whisper directly into my ear. "If you are the one who associates himself with Hollows, I will not show you any mercy," he whispered malevolently into my ear. Good try there, Aizen, but I believe that you should not be judging me on that prospect.

I smirked at Aizen and whispered back at him, "Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. But know this; I have no reiryoku, therefore I do not possess any abilities that Shinigami or Hollows have."

I took a step towards the Captain Commander in hopes that he would understand that I wanted to speak with him alone. The Captain Commander, thankfully, spoke up to Aizen, "Captain Aizen, you may leave," he said with his ever present stern voice.

The future traitor bowed and immediately used shunpo to get out of hearing range of the coming conversation between the Captain Commander and me. "What is it you want, chakra monster?" he demanded of me.

I would have to change that notion. I didn't want to be called a 'chakra monster' when it didn't come to the fact that my reserves were higher than Kisame Hoshigaki's own reserves. "That's one of the things that I'll have to change," I said, as if stating a fact, "I am not a 'chakra monster'. I am a shinobi. That's what we're called. Shinobi."

The Captain Commander seemed to take a moment to think, but then he nodded, "Very well, then. Shinobi, what is it you want?" this time he asked politely, yet still in his old, stern voice.

I smiled benevolently at him. "I want to discuss with you the conspiracy that is going on in the Gotei thirteen."

He frowned, "Very well," then he turned to his forgotten Vice Captain, "You may take your leave," he said to him.

The Lieutenant, who honestly speaking is quite easy to forget, bowed immediately and left the meeting hall with a quick shunpo. The Captain Commander turned back to me, and took a few steps forward, making his way towards me. He was within five feet of me when I noticed that he was probably testing me with reiatsu. "I do hope you know that reiatsu doesn't affect shinobi," I politely told him off.

Yamamoto's eyebrows twitched, but then he probably let up on his reiatsu. "Yes, I see that now. Now, what is it you want to discuss with me about this conspiracy that you mentioned?"

"I want to tell you first that whatever I say now will not leave this room. Because, honestly, I don't think it'd be swell if the traitorous Captain knew of me being a fortune teller and all that," I said, smirking at the twitch of the Captain Commander's eyebrow.

"What do you mean by 'fortune teller'?" Yamamoto commanded me to answer, and it was an answer he would get.

My smirk widened, "I mean that I can see glimpses of the future. Such as who the traitor is, their method of leaving Soul Society for Hueco Mundo, and the future battle you will have with their army's best of the best. By the way, his or her army is purely made out of Arrancar. Well, not really. There are two Shinigami that are under the traitor's command."

Yamamoto's eyebrow twitched once again, "Who is the conspirator? Who is the traitor? Who are the Shinigami that follow the traitorous Captain's lead?" he demanded.

"I will only tell you on several conditions. You can accept now, or not. Your choice."

The Captain Commander gave an irritated sigh from him. "Very well. Name your conditions," he said.

I clapped once with my hands, "Excellent," I said, smiling, "First condition. Leave my fellow shinobi alone. Order your Shinigami to not engage in combat with them. That is the first condition. Second condition would be to order your Shinigami to guard and treat my fellow shinobi like they themselves wish to be treated. Third condition, do not let any of the Twelfth Division, Ninth Division, Fifth Division or Third Division Captains near them-"

I was interrupted by the Captain Commander, "So those are the traitors? I will have them arrested immediately."

I quickly put a hand forward, stopping Yamamoto's oncoming shunpo. "No!" I hastily said. "No," I said a little quieter, "You are not going to interfere with the timeline I have in mind as of yet. That is my fourth condition. Do everything I say. You may question whatever action I want you to do, however. I will answer with whatever power I have."

Yamamoto's eyes opened a little bit, allowing me to see his red eyes. "Very well then. I understand that if I arrest them your power of telling the future will not be accurate. Am I correct in that assumption?" he asked, then he squinted his eyes again. Which made me wonder if his eyes really were bad or something. I highly doubted it, though. It was probably more of a habit than anything. But oh well, I wasn't about to complain about the Captain Commander's habits.

I nodded, "Yes, you're right. However, I wish to not change anything until the battle of Karakura comes."

"So the battle of that city you mentioned will be Karakura, then?"

I yet again nodded. "Yes," I said simply.

"Alright, then," then he tapped the floor with his Zanpakuto staff with finality, "Who are the traitors?"

I smirked. "Gin Ichimaru, Kaname Tousen and last, but definitely not least, Sosuke Aizen." Telling the Captain Commander about Aizen's plans would totally ruin whatever plans Aizen had, if he planned on winning the battle for Karakura. Something told me that he would definitely lose the fight, now that I was in the Gotei thirteen's good graces. Or at least for now. I hoped that he would uphold his end of the bargain.

Yamamoto made a grunting noise and proceeded to walk out of the hall. I stopped him with a "Wait!"

He stopped. He didn't turn around, expecting me to say what I wanted to say despite not giving the courtesy of at least faking attention. But hey, I did have his attention, so never mind that. "Are you going to arrest the traitors?"

Yamamoto scoffed and turned around, "Who do you think I am, youngster?" then he turned around again, not noticing my frown. "I will uphold my end of the bargain as long as you uphold yours. If you give us information that we require then yes, I will not arrest them. Thank you for giving us this information. It will be most useful in the future." Did- did he just thank me? Well, I wasn't about to complain about the Captain fucking Commander thanking me. It was awesome.

Alright then, here goes nothing.

* * *

><p>My clone turned around to face Konan, Zabuza and Haku. My clone had been standing guard for the hour they had been in hiding. "Alright guys," my clone called. That caught the attention of the three shinobi.<p>

"What is it?" Zabuza's gravely voice cut through the silence that followed my attention seeking little shout.

"The Captain Commander, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto has given us leave from being arrested. You're welcome to go wherever you want now, I think. I'll dispel myself now, and the real me will flare his chakra once he receives the memories of this clone. See you!" and then my clone dispelled itself.

* * *

><p>I received the memories of the shadow clone and its words. And as promised by my shadow clone, I spiked my chakra signature so that it would be noticeable by even an academy student. Except the academy student in the Soul Academy, of course. They weren't exactly trained in detecting chakra, now, were they?<p>

I walked out of the meeting hall and saw a beautiful sight. There was paper butterflies flying, surrounding Konan who had paper wings on her back. She wore her outfit that she wore underneath her Akatsuki robes, those blue clothes of hers, which meant I got a nice show of side boo-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

Anyway, looking past hormones, I believed the sight to be beautiful. Konan's legs were slowly regenerating themselves, her paper masterfully piecing itself back together to form her long and lean legs. I sighed. Why was I such a pervert all of a sudden?

Then, in a show of shunshin, Haku and Zabuza arrived. They totally ruined the show, but hey, who cared, other than me?

"So," Haku drawled, "What're we going to do now?"

I smiled at them, "Now, we ask the Captain Commander where we can get ourself some rest, and then..."

We wait.

* * *

><p>I had asked the Captain Commander about residence, which he gladly – or as gladly as he could, seeing as he was the Captain Commander and all – gave us. We were escorted to the residence by the Captain Commander's Lieutenant.<p>

We went through mazes of walls, met several wary Shinigami, but once they spotted our own Shinigami escort, they relaxed. We were, after all, supposed to be locked up, but now that the Captain Commander had given us leave from our locked up cells, I believed that every Shinigami and Shinigami Captain and Lieutenant knew about our status. If not, then I would have to say that the messaging system of the Gotei thirteen were surely obsolete. I mean, really, hell butterflies? Really? They could use phones as a means of contact and communication instead, but no, they had to use hell butterflies. Oh well, I wasn't about to complain to the Captain Commander about their inefficient messaging system.

Once we got there I was surprised. It was a small house, but we were shinobi. We were used to small housings. But that wasn't what had surprised me at all. No, it was the garden. There were beautiful cherry blossom trees everywhere, really putting on a show of grandeur.

The Captain Commander's Lieutenant bowed to us, "This is the place of residence that you have received by the Captain Commander's good graces. Please do not dirty it or otherwise damage the residence. I have been told to tell you that the Captain Commander gives you his regards, and says that should you need anything else, I will be of service to you at your beck and call. Under reasonable circumstances, of course," he told us.

I bowed back to him, "Thank you very much, Lieutenant," I said. How convenient that the Lieutenant of the Captain Commander would answer – to use his own words – our every beck and call. I was grateful of the Captain Commander for that.

He bowed once again, "You are welcome. Now, if you ever need me, I will be at the Captain Commander's side at all times. You already know where the Captains' meeting hall is. There is a door on the far wall's left. You will see a hallway. Just continue to the end of the hallway. The door there will lead to the Captain Commander's office, and to where I will be," he explained. He nodded at us, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I will go back to the Captain Commander's side."

I nodded back at him, and then the First Division's Lieutenant disappeared in a shunpo. I turned around to face the rest of the gang. "Well," I said, "Let's get exploring!"

* * *

><p>The house was standard in design, but it was still comfortable, everything considered. The only bad thing I could point out would be the choice of furniture, but I believed that that was a matter of personal preference. The furniture I liked was futuristic in style, black in colour, and preferably leather. Otherwise made out of clean cut beige wood, as well as stainless polished steel. But hey, Japanese furniture styles weren't bad at all. I liked the traditional Japanese feeling the house gave off. The kitchen wasn't really up to snuff when it came to before my entrance into the fictional universes, but it was definitely practical in all senses of the word. The living was small, but comfortable, with a round, dark brown, wooden table that you had to sit on the floor to sit by it. There were pillows, however, to sit on by the wooden table. There were two floors, and once one would go up the staircase, you would enter a hallway, with several doors lining the hallway. There were a total of five doors. Each of the rooms that the doors led to contained two futons, ready and prepared for anyone to sleep in, complete with comforter and pillow. All the rooms were of the same size, and the same furniture, strangely enough. There was a grandfather clock by the entrance of the house, counting the time that had passed since its making. Now why there was a grandfather clock, I did not know. Because, frankly speaking, the grandfather clock was a western innovation, yet it was there nonetheless, despite the apparent Japanese style of the place. But I wasn't about to complain about something as trivial as a grandfather clock not belonging, since it was telling the time. And it did so accurately, actually. Curious, but I wouldn't say anything about it.<p>

"Well," I said, as I plunked myself down onto one of the pillows that were available for sitting by the living room table. "I believe we just scored jackpot," I smugly said.

Zabuza, Haku and Konan all sat down by the round table as well. However, it was Konan who first broke the silence that followed my words, "How did that manga universe, Naruto I believed you called it, end? Who won the battle against Madara?"

I sighed. I expected them to ask about the validity on my coming from another universe, but hey, this served my purpose to keep my fellow shinobi safe well enough. "I don't know how the manga ends. I don't know who won against Madara. But know this," as I said those words I looked straight into Konan's beautiful grey eyes. "If I hadn't arrived into the Naruto universe, you would have died by Madara's hand."

Konan's eyes widened. She was obviously surprised by my claim. "Why?" she asked after a small moment of silence.

I stared into her eyes still. "Because of Nagato's Rinnegan. You were protecting Nagato's Rinnegan eyes from Madara, so that they wouldn't come to his possession. You failed at that task. I remember clearly that you got a stab wound through your stomach with a metal rod," I said slowly. I was feeling a little sick in the stomach by the notion that someone as attractive as Konan was killed by someone as vile as Madara.

Konan frowned at no one and nothing in particular. "I see. Thank you. Did I fight for a cause? Was I lost in the dark path of vengeance?" she asked.

I smiled kindly at her. She was, after all, my favourite female character from the Naruto universe. Not my absolute favourite female character of all animes. That 'honour' belonged to Tia Harribel. And I had a chance to meet her! The very thought almost made me giddy in complete anticipation and exhilaration. "No. You were 'lost'", queue air quotes, "In the enlightened path to the peace of the world. You fought for Naruto to succeed in reaching that goal," but then I turned curious. "But I am curious about something. Why didn't you give Naruto Nagato's Rinnegan after he defeated Nagato's Six Paths of Pain? It would have definitely helped Naruto in his quest for world peace."

Konan sighed, "Yes, it would. And we did actually offer him Nagato's eyes. However, Naruto showed us that he had had a genjutsu on his person, a genjutsu similar to the Fifth Hokage's form of henge. When we offered him the Rinnegan, he disabled the genjutsu and showed us that he already had the Rinnegan," and then she looked at me with narrowed eyes. "Something he claimed that _you_ gave him."

That made me raise an eyebrow. I would have suspected that the timeline would have changed significantly by training Naruto and giving him something that would have allegedly made him a freaking genius. But nope, apparently, _that_ technique that Jiraya must have referred to in my Naruto timeline must have been the Rinnegan and all things that related to it. Which meant every single technique that Naruto had gained since the beginning of the training trip. But after revealing the Rinnegan, he must have understood that not using the Rinnegan would only produce more casualties than not using it. "Did he start using the Rinnegan after that?" I asked Konan.

She nodded.

Well then, that clarified many things. "I see," I said. Then I turned back to Konan's eyes. "Yes, I did give him the Rinnegan. There is a technique for those with the Rinnegan that allows them to give others the Rinnegan. I don't know the name of the technique, but it takes one hundred and forty three hand seals just to transfer it to another person." I looked at Zabuza and Haku, waggling my eyebrows. "Anyone would want a set of Rinnegan?" I asked suggestively. No homo, though.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I apologize for the shortness of this chapter, but in return for shorter chapters, you will receive them a lot quicker. But next chapter will not come out tomorrow. It will come out the day after tomorrow, simply because I want to make a longer chapter. Or maybe in three days... tell me in a review when you would like the next chapter.  
>Also, who do you think is more attractive? Tia Harribel or Konan? Your choice will affect the story's future. Just tell me in a review.<br>What do you think about Zabuza and Haku, perhaps even Konan, gaining the Rinnegan as well? Please tell me in a review.  
><strong>Also, the poll is still going!<strong>


	47. Talk With The Highest Ups

**Author's Note: **Poll is still going strong! Please vote in it if you already haven't!

* * *

><p>"No," Zabuza, Haku and Konan answered, curiously enough at the same time.<p>

Well, it didn't really bother me that they didn't want the Rinnegan. I would have lost my uniqueness if I had given them the Rinnegan. They would be killer if I had given them the Rinnegan, and considering all its abilities, I believe I would have to be extra careful around Zabuza. The blood lust would consume him. And I wouldn't want to think about Haku and Konan. They probably would be able to suppress the blood lust following the use of the abilities of the Rinnegan, though. I wasn't about to complain if they weren't willing to get those eyes. They would be too powerful anyway, perhaps becoming consumed by it in the process.

"Ah, it doesn't bother me that you don't want the Rinnegan," I gestured emptily towards the air. "Besides, I'd lose my originality," I said boisterously, grinning like a mad idiot. As in, like Naruto before the training trip. The thought alone made me snort in good humour.

Zabuza shook his head, "I really can't figure you out, Takuma," he looked at me with his calculating and bandaged face. Well, not really bandaged, he just had it covered up with bandages instead of wearing a half mask like Kakashi Hatake. "One moment you're a happy go lucky guy, the next you're a person who wants attention like that idiot Naruto-"

"Naruto's not an idiot anymore!" I proclaimed, wildly gesturing towards the air with my hands.

"Whatever. What I mean is that sometimes you're one person one moment, the next you're another. I really, really can't figure you out, Takuma. What is it that drives you? What is it that makes you _you_?"

I smiled knowingly at Zabuza. I didn't know what it was that drove me to the next objective. Was it determination to see things through? Was it determination to see loved ones again? What was it? I didn't know... and to be honest, I didn't care. I was determined to see things through for some reason or another, and I would be damned if I didn't do it. "What drives me? What makes me _me_? I'll give you an answer, Momochi," then I smirked. "I," I paused for dramatic effect. I swore that even Konan, with all her calmness and stuff like that, leaned forward, if even a little bit, in interest. "Don't know," I finally said.

Zabuza and Haku both palmed their faces at the same time, while Konan just leaned backwards, tilting her head down and sighing, probably in disappointment. Dammit, I didn't want my favourite female character from Naruto to be disappointed in me. "However," I said. This seemed to make them look past their disappointment at me and look at me for who I was. "I am willing to follow you all to the end of the line. It doesn't matter what my cause or reason for being her is. It doesn't matter what purpose I have here. All I know is that I will kill people just to keep you all safe. That is my purpose, from what little I can figure out. I will not let anyone hurt any of you. Be it the Captain Commander, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the strongest Shinigami to live yet, or be it the traitorous Captain's forces, I will not let anyone hurt any of you. Especially not if you are not participating in any battles. Besides," I gestured loosely with my hand, "It's not like I'm your enemy or anything, right? I'm only an enemy to the traitorous Captains, and they will reveal themselves in time."

Konan looked at me for a moment with slightly wide eyes. Only slightly, because she was, after all, damn near the epitome of calmness. Then she averted her eyes to the kitchen shogi door. "I will go and make us some tea," she said calmly. She rose up from her seat on the pillow and walked towards the kitchen.

Was that a blush on her face? I couldn't really tell. I was too mesmerized by her beauty. And her cleavage-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

_Anyway_, I looked at Zabuza and Haku. Weirdly enough, Haku was blushing for some reason or other. It was a slight blush, but it was visible enough that if I had channelled chakra through my eyes I would have seen it-

Wait...

I was channelling chakra through my eyes. Dammit, I was getting careless in my channelling chakra. Despite me having three tails worth of chakra, more than what Kisame Hoshigaki had, I still had to be careful about the chakra I was channelling. Oh well, it wasn't like I was about to run out of it anyway. I stopped channelling chakra through my eyes. Which had a weird result. My eyesight got blurry. Only slightly, but it was noticeable. It was probably a result from using the Susanoo and Amaterasu, as well as the Tsukiyomi, and whatnot so much in the previous universe. Oh well, it wasn't like it would affect my performance in the battlefield. Right? Of course.

Konan returned a few minutes later with a few cups worth of green tea. I didn't know that the kitchen had anything to make tea with, much less provisions, but I wasn't about to go and complain to the Captain Commander. I mean, really, why would I? It served its purpose, and now I was going to drink some delicious green tea. Speaking of green tea, I looked up and stared directly into Konan's eyes and told her, "Thank you."

Which made me look into the light brown, wooden cup containing the green tea. It also made me miss Konan's slight blush at my thanks. It made me wonder about something. Why is it called green tea, when the tea itself was brown? Perhaps it was the leafs that were green, thus naming the tea green tea. Or perhaps it was something completely different. But I wasn't about to voice my stupid thoughts.

Wait...

Looking at the green tea, I saw a tint of green in the, admittedly tasty, brown tea. Maybe that was why it was called green tea. Brown was such a boring colour to begin with. Which reminded me. I should totally get a white kimono again. Brown totally doesn't suit me.

* * *

><p>I was walking towards the Captain Commander's office, wanting to tell him about the storyline of the Bleach universe, and tell him to just let things play out. I entered the Captain Commander's office after knocking and receiving a call to enter. I walked towards the table that the Captain Commander sat by. I bowed at the waist at him. "Hello there," I said, as if I knew things he didn't know. Which I did, to be honest. "Captain Commander," I finished, looking up and directly at the Captain Commander's old and squinting eyes.<p>

"For what purpose have you come here, shinobi?" Yamamoto asked. How polite of him to gesture to the only other chair that was by the table on the opposite side of him. I sat down and made myself comfortable. I was perhaps taking too much advantage of the Captain Commander's hospitality though. I didn't really care. He would, after all, in the foreseeable future, attack – or more like defend himself from – Tia Harribel's Fracción. And since I liked Tia, I would have to also recommend that the Captain Commander would not kill or hurt, only disable, Tia Harribel's subordinates.

"Please," I said, "My name is Shinji Takuma. Now, what I came to discuss with you is the future. I am, after all, a person who has a vague understanding of the future," I smiled.

Yamamoto nodded. "Continue, Shinji Takuma," he said.

I curtly bowed from the seat I occupied.

Then I began telling him of the plot of Bleach. I began with the entrance of Ichigo and company, and I even gave him the names of them all. Even Yoruichi. Naming her did surprise Yamamoto a little, but he quickly nodded and asked me to continue. He was surprised once again when I mentioned Uryuu Ishida, but I believed that he had heard of Ishida's father before, and recognized Uryuu's surname. Then I continued and told them of Ichigo and company's encounter with Ganju Shiba. Yamamoto was taken aback – or as taken aback as the Captain Commander could be – by the Shiba name, but nodded at me so that I could continue. I then detailed Ichigo's fight with Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, and Jidanbo's loss at Ichigo's hand. I also told him that Gin was present when Jidanbo opened the gate. He nodded at this, knowing that Gin was there at that moment. Then I told him of Jidanbo's sudden lack of an arm when Gin released his Shikai. That information made Yamamoto's eyebrow twitch in annoyance, probably. He was probably angry at Gin's reckless use of Shikai. But I did mention that he wasn't all bad. I would tell him later about it.

Then I went on about Ichigo's and his friends' battles in Seireitei. About Ichigo's battle with Kenpachi Zaraki, and the subsequent hiding of Ichigo and company in the sewers. I also told him of Hanataro's supposedly traitorous acts with Ichigo and Ganju Shiba. Then I detailed the act to save Rukia with Yoruichi's help.

I went on and on about the entire invasion of Soul Society by Ichigo and his friends, and I told him of Byakuya's seemingly cruel act.

Then when I reached Aizen's death that was witnessed by most Captains and some Lieutenants, Yamamoto stopped me with a wave of his hand. "How is that possible? You told me that he was the traitor, as well as Gin and Tousen. If he dies, how can he be alive to turn traitor?"

I smiled, "Very perceptive of you, Captain Commander Yamamoto. However, he was actually using his Shikai's powers. His Zanpakuto's powers has nothing to do with water or the like. His Zanpakuto's ability is actually complete hypnosis, able to put anyone who sees his Shikai before touching it under his control. His Shikai's power is to control all five senses. He does so with subtlety, so his manipulations won't put any suspicion on himself."

Yamamoto grumbled a little, then he told me, "I understand the implications. Continue, Shinji Takuma."

And I did.

I reached the point where Hitsugaya would be the the leader of the task force that would be there to assist Ichigo and company against the Arrancar threat when the doors far behind me, the entrance of the Captain Commander's office, were knocked on.

Yamamoto heard the knock and told whomsoever that was on the other side of the door to enter. I didn't turn around to face whoever entered. "Captain Hitsugaya. What is it you want? I was just talking to a shinobi," he said.

I twisted my upper body around, and sure enough, there was Toshiro Hitsugaya, standing in all his four feet four inch glory. His eyes were in their usual turquoise, narrowed, calm selves. He bowed to Yamamoto, and then proceeded to say, "I apologize for interrupting, Captain Commander, but I believe that the chakra monster-"

"Shinobi, Captain Hitsugaya," Yamamoto's voice interrupted Hitsugaya's own.

Hitsugaya was visibly taken aback, but then he bowed in apology. "Yes, I apologize. I... momentarily forgot the message that you sent to all Captains."

I smiled and nonchalantly waved with my hand. "That's quite alright, Captain Hitsugaya," I was _this_ close to call him shorty, just to see his reaction. But my reasonable side won out when I noticed that I was in the presence of someone who could easily just use shunpo and stab me through the chest with his sword. Granted I would easily be able to dodge it, and Yamamoto would be furious beyond measure, but hey, I guessed correctly that staying in the good graces of as many Captains as possible would be beneficial in the long run.

Hitsugaya nodded and continued. "I believe that the shinobi here," he gestured stiffly with his hand towards me, "Would be able to reveal who the traitorous Captain is, taking his fortune telling into consideration."

I laughed. It was a short laugh, but one that did not escape either Captains. I would be honestly surprised if it had escaped any Captain, really. "Really now, Captain Hitsugaya," I was once again _this_ close to calling him 'Captain Shorty', but I resisted once again. I noticed that Hitsugaya was glaring at me. Oh well, shit happens. "Of course I can, Captain. But first, who do you think is the conspirator? Do you think it's Jyuushiro Ukitake? Mayuri Kurotsuchi? Kenpachi Zaraki? Kaname Tousen? Shunsui Kyoraku? Sajin Komamura? Byakuya Kuchiki? Sosuke Aizen? Retsu Unohana? Gin Ichimaru? Or perhaps Soi Fon? We know that it's not the Captain Commander, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. So," I gave Hitsugaya an ultimatum. "Who do you think is the conspirator? If you give a right answer, well, I'll definitely tell you who it is!" I finished boisterously.

Hitsugaya's glare was intense, and I was pretty sure that if I could sense spiritual pressure I would be on my knees, struggling to stand upright. However, I just smiled mirthfully and slyly at Hitsugaya. Then Hitsugaya pinched the bridge of his nose to calm himself. When he looked at me again he was his usual composed self. "I believe it to be Gin Ichimaru. Am I right?" he demanded in his usual calm, and slightly irritated and stressed out, tone. My my, I was sure that if I were a girl I would be all over Hitsugaya like a rabid fan girl.

I chuckled and turned around to face Yamamoto. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow, silently asking if I could reveal the critical information about Gin's supposed treason.

Yamamoto nodded in response to my silent question.

I sighed and heavily plunked myself down onto the chair. "Well, you'd only be half right. Well, no, more like a third," I finally said.

I heard Hitsugaya give a short gasp. "Who else? Answer me!" he demanded audibly.

"Captain Hitsugaya. Restrain yourself. You are in front of the Captain Commander and a shinobi," the Captain Commander said loudly to the Captain of the Tenth Division.

Well, I didn't know that Yamamoto held us shinobi in _that_ high a regard. But it was only good, though, I guessed. Hitsugaya was ashamed of his outburst, and immediately apologized. "I'm sorry for my outburst, Captain Commander. But I really want to know who the traitors are so I, or us loyal Captains, can deal with them," Hitsugaya looked up again, and as I turned around to face him again, I saw that his eyes held a determined quality to them. A very determined quality to them.

I nodded in approval, "Well then, who do you think is loyal, Captain Hitsugaya?" I wasn't as close to calling Hitsugaya shorty anymore. I appreciated that notion. That I wasn't as close to calling him shorty, that is. Nothing else. I think I'd get my ass frozen if I decided to call him shorty. So I refrained from it. "It could be anyone else that is traitorous. Who, however, is the question," oh how I loved playing mind games.

Hitsugaya's body visibly tensed. He probably thought I was _one of those guys_. One of those guys that loved to play mind games and watch the masses go into extreme hysteria. Well, I was one of _those_ guys. But only because of the apparent stupidity of the masses, of course. "I believe that the Captains Kyoraku, Ukitake, Komamura, Aizen, Unohana and Soi Fon to be loyal. For all the talk about justice, Tousen seems to not really be that much of a loyal Shinigami Captain. And as for Kuchiki, his indifference with Rukia Kuchiki's execution tells volumes of what he is otherwise capable of. I believe that if he is indifferent about his own adopted sister's execution, then he should be able to communicate with Hollows. He is, after all, strong enough to take down most Captains in a one on one fight, which in turn means that he is able to take down Menos Vasto Lorde level Hollows. That should give him respect among Hollows."

I chuckled good naturedly. "A very good analysis on the Sixth Division Captain, Captain Hitsugaya. Is it true, however? I won't tell you. I will rather only tell the Captain Commander about the true traitors. Which, by the way, I already have. So no worries!" I said aloud, spreading my arms in a good mood. I was in an unexplainable good mood for some reason or other. I wasn't going to complain, but it was strange. In a wild hypothesis I made up on the spot, I thought it to be the Rinnegan that made me that way. But that was an impossibility. I mean, really. The Rinnegan didn't affect my mood unless I used any of the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities. Maybe it was just the prospect of meeting people I knew were someone's favourite character made me all the more happy. Yeah, that was more likely. Besides, in perhaps a few more months I could help Tia Harribel and her Fracción. It would be so much fun if I met Tia Harribel.

Captain Hitsugaya's eyes were wide. "What?" he exclaimed. He turned his surprised gaze to meet the look of the Captain Commander's own. "But if you know who the traitors are, then why not arrest them? Or better yet, give them the Sokyoku punishment?" Hitsugaya asked the Captain Commander, being careful to keep his tone civil and straight. But you could hear the surprise and nervousness at the same time in his voice.

"That is not for you to know yet, Captain Hitsugaya. Return to your Division immediately," the bad ass grandpa took the matters into his own hands and told off the white haired Tenth Division Captain. The Captain Commander had probably raised his reiatsu, because I saw the short Captain gulp. Well, I saw his Adam's apple bob. Hitsugaya bowed and retreated from Yamamoto's office with great haste.

Once the doors closed, I turned back to the Captain Commander, Yamamoto. "So, where were we?" I pleasantly said.

Yamamoto huffed and adjusted himself in his seat a little so that he was leaning forwards while being more comfortable. "I believe you were at Captain Hitsugaya's task force being attacked by an Espada's Fracción."

"Ah, yes. The Sexta Espada's, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez's, Fracción attack Karakura town."

Thus I began to explain to the Captain Commander the fights the Sixth Espada's Fracción have with Hitsugaya's task force. I explained the system of the Espada and Numerós, as well as the Privaron Espada. I mentioned that the only three known Privaron Espada were Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio, Cirucci Sanderwicci and Gantenbainne Mosqueda. I also mentioned that later on they would be defeated by Ichigo Kurosaki, Uryuu Ishida and Sado Yasutora, respectively.

Then I finally got to listing the Espada. I told the Captain Commander that each Espada had a significant aspect of death to them. The Diez Espada, who was coincidentally, when released, also the Cero Espada, Yammy Riyalgo. His aspect of death was 'rage'. The Noveno Espada, Aaroniero Arruruerie. His aspect of death was 'greed'. The Octava Espada, Szayel Aporro Granz. His aspect of death was 'madness'. The Septima Espada, Zommari Rureaux. His aspect of death was 'intoxication'. The Sexta Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. His aspect of death was 'destruction'. The Quinto Espada, Nnoitra Gilga. His aspect of death was 'despair'. The Cuatro Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer. His aspect of death was 'emptiness'. The Tercera Espada, Tia Harribel. Her aspect of death was 'sacrifice'.

I also mentioned that when facing her Fracción, the Captain Commander should only aim to disable, not burn into unconsciousness. Yamamoto readily agreed to my condition, before I continued.

The Segunda Espada, Baraggan Louisenbairn. His aspect of death was 'time', and in proxy, 'old age'. The Primera Espada, Coyote Starrk. His aspect of death was 'solitude'.

I told the – very – old man that Coyote Starrk had split his soul into two parts. This did surprise the bearded Captain Commander – or as surprised as he did get – but he let me continue without interruption. I told him that his other part was called 'Lilynette Gingerbuck'. Somehow, when they were Vasto Lorde, not Arrancar, even when split their reiatsu was so massive that it killed off normal Hollows. It did surprise the old man Captain Commander, but he didn't seem too surprised. He probably, and correctly, assumed that his loyal Captains would still be able to beat them.

Then I got to the kidnapping of the kind Orihime Inoue. I explained that she was kidnapped by the Cuatro Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer. I also explained about Orihime healing her two Shinigami escorts when she was about to be kidnapped. I did mention that she had somewhere around twelve hours to say goodbye to whomever she wanted to.

Then I finally got to the invasion of Hueco Mundo, or more specifically, Las Noches by Ichigo and friends, all going to Las Noches to save Orihime Inoue. I left out the whole affair with Ashido out, seeing as while it was originally intended to be in the manga by Kubo Tite, it was still in the anime only. And so far, I believed that the universes I was in was solely based on manga, not the anime.

Then I explained that the Captain Commander had sent four Shinigami Captains, Captains Byakuya Kuchiki, Kenpachi Zaraki, Retsu Unohana and Mayuri Kurotsuchi, along with some other Shinigami, namely Hanataro Yamada, Rukia Kuchiki and Renji Abarai to help Ichigo and his friends save Orihime Inoue.

I also explained that he, the Captain Commander, had ordered the Twelfth Division to build a fake Karakura town, and that their task was accomplished on time with the help of Kisuke Urahara. At mentioning Urahara helping the Gotei thirteen, one of the eyebrow of Yamamoto's twitched something fiercely, but he obliged with the notion that he would seek out Urahara's help eventually anyway to stop Sosuke Aizen, the traitorous Captain, as well as Kaname Tousen. Gin Ichimaru didn't need to be stopped, seeing as he only turned traitor to be able to get information out of Aizen and to get the jump out of attacking him.

Yamamoto agreed to give Gin leave, should he not cripple any Shinigami that was under the Gotei thirteen's command. And should he survive the attacks from Aizen. If it came to that, of course.

I did tell Yamamoto the reason as to why Gin left Seireitei for Aizen; it was so that Rangiku Matsumoto, the Tenth Division's Lieutenant, wouldn't cry anymore.

What really disturbed me at that moment was that the Captain Commander sighed in a manner that made him seem as if he was a sap for romance.

That really, really didn't need to be imprinted into my mind.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I told him of the battle between the Cuatro Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer and Ichigo Kurosaki. I did tell him that Ichigo almost died, and let his Hollow control him for a short period of time, a period of time where Ichigo, in his Hollowfied form, kicked Ulquiorra's ass so hard it wasn't even funny. Then I told him that Ichigo regained consciousness over his own body and then went to fake Karakura with the Captain of the Fourth Division, Retsu Unohana. Unohana would then restore Ichigo's reiryoku, seeing as it had been severely depleted, yet still had Captain's level reiatsu.

When Ichigo arrived at the fake Karakura town he would completely envelop Aizen in a full-on Getsuga Tensho, just without donning his Hollow mask. Aizen himself had said that if Ichigo Kurosaki would have worn his Hollow mask then, Aizen would have definitely have died.

Old man Yamamoto interrupted me with a slight wave of his hand. "Before you continue, Shinji Takuma, please explain to me how and why Ichigo Kurosaki has Hollow abilities."

I nodded. "Ichigo Kurosaki has Hollow abilities because he went down what was called the 'Shattered Shaft'. It was constructed by Kisuke Urahara, and it has the special ability to speed up the process of which the Chain of Fate deteriorates. When Ichigo Kurosaki Hollowfied, he resisted, and managed in the end to grab onto his Zanpakuto in his inner world and completely wipe the Hollow inside him. That was what Kisuke Urahara wanted. That was not what happened. What happened was that a Hollow was created inside Ichigo Kurosaki. That Hollow would learn what Ichigo Kurosaki learned, would grow as Ichigo Kurosaki grew. That means that if Ichigo Kurosaki learns Bankai, which he will before he faces Byakuya Kuchiki in the invasion of Seireitei, his Hollow would learn Bankai. However, there is one ability that the Hollow uses first instead of Ichigo Kurosaki. The black Getsuga Tensho, which, in all honesty, is just the same Getsuga Tensho, just black with a red outline to it. And significantly stronger. Ichigo Kurosaki's inner Hollow uses it first against Byakuya Kuchiki when Kurosaki loses consciousness when fighting him."

"I see. Continue."

I continued explaining and detailing the rest of the plot of Bleach. Finally, I reached the battle for fake Karakura. I said that the Tercera Espada, Tia Harribel, her Fracción, the Segunda Espada, Baraggan Louisenbairn, his Fracción, and the Primera Espada and the other half of his soul would be there. I also said that Captains Jyuushiro Ukitake, Toshiro Hitsugaya, Shunsui Kyoraku, Sajin Komamura, Soi Fon, and the Captain Commander himself would be there to defend the fake Karakura that was constructed by the Twelfth Division with Kisuke Urahara's help, as well as their Lieutenants, except for the Captain Commander's Lieutenant and the Eighth Captain's Lieutenant, and the Eleventh Division's Third Seat and Fifth Seat. The Lieutenant of the Third Division and Ninth Division were there as well, despite not having any Captains to guide them. The Lieutenant of Fifth Division would arrive at the battlefield later, though, despite her fragile mind. I detailed that there would be four pillars that created a barrier so that the reiatsu that was expelled from the battles wouldn't affect the real world.

I also explained the battles and who was against who. Tia Harribel against Captain Hitsugaya. Hitsugaya's Lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto would be up against Tia Harribel's Fracción. The Segunda Espada, Baraggan Louisenbairn, would be up against the Second Division Captain, Soi Fon, and her incompetent Lieutenant, Marechiyo Omaeda. The Segunda Espada's Fracción would be going to each of the pillars to destroy them. I didn't go into detail about each of the pillar guards' fights, seeing as I had forgotten some of them, but the only thing necessary to know about the fights was that it was the Shinigami that came out on top. The Primera Espada, Coyote Starrk, would be up against Shunsui Kyoraku. And despite being the Primera Espada, thus being the strongest of all the Espada – except for the Cero Espada – Starrk would still lose against the combined powers of Shunsui Kyoraku and Jyuushiro Ukitake.

Finally I got to the point where the Visored got to the battlefield. It did surprise the Captain Commander that the Visored arrived at the battlefield, but he supposed that with the crisis of Aizen's betrayal and all, it was to be expected. I told the bearded man that the Visored's Hollow powers were thanks to Aizen's actions. Therefore, bearing a grudge against Aizen and being Ichigo's allies, they would arrive to help Gotei thirteen's forces. At the very least they would stall Aizen. At the most they would harm him a little bit.

Then I said that that point was where it got really blurry for me. I mentioned that after the Visored got to the battle Ichigo would arrive, and it would be right behind Aizen through Garganta that Ichigo would arrive. He would then use a black Getsuga Tensho without using a Hollow mask, completely enveloping Aizen in a fiery storm of black Getsuga Tensho. However, Aizen would guard that specific part of his neck with a strong Kido spell, protecting him from harm. Had Ichigo worn his Hollow mask, Aizen would have at least been harmed. Ichigo hadn't donned his Hollow mask.

I then mentioned that Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihoin and Isshin Kurosaki would arrive to help Ichigo defeat Aizen after Captain Commander Yamamoto had used Hado ninety six, Single Blade Cremation, or Itto Kaso for short, against Aizen. Aizen would survive the damage done by Itto Kaso with minimal damage. Ichigo would then ambush Aizen, but Aizen was able to deflect Ichigo's Hollowfied blows.

Then I said that it got really, really blurry for me. I said that because I didn't want anything after that to happen; I didn't want the Captain Commander to lose his left arm for recklessly using the Single Blade Cremation, because honestly speaking, the Captain Commander was the only one besides Ichigo who could challenge Aizen with reiatsu and reiryoku. The thousand years Captain Commander nodded in response, expecting himself to be stronger than the brown eyed traitorous Captain in terms of reiryoku. But Yamamoto did question how Ichigo would be able to be stronger than Aizen in terms of reiryoku and reiatsu when he couldn't defeat Aizen when he was Hollowfied.

I smirked at that and said that that particular part was very clear to me. Once Urahara, Yoruichi and Ichigo's father would arrive, Gin Ichimaru would challenge Ichigo to a one on one battle. Ichigo would lose that battle, especially since Gin had activated his Bankai, and Gin would then tell Ichigo to go, to flee. Of course, Ichigo wouldn't, seeing as his friends were in danger. But the point stood. He was far too weak at that moment.

However, after Aizen thoroughly beat Isshin, Yoruichi and Urahara, Aizen would command his 'subordinate' to open a gate to Soul Society so that he could create the King's Key with the souls of Karakura. Mentioning the King's Key from before did surprise Yamamoto, but he let me continue without a hassle. Without a hell butterfly Aizen and Ichimaru would have to go through the Precipice World, or the Dangai. Because of the Hogyouku, Aizen wouldn't have to worry about the Kototsu, destroying it completely in the process of getting into Soul Society, unknowingly creating his demise. I told the Captain Commander that I would explain what I meant by that later. Once Aizen was gone, Isshin made his son and himself go through the Dangai, and once Isshin noticed that the Dangai was clear of the Kototsu, he noticed a clear opportunity. He stopped the flow of time in the Dangai, and then he told Ichigo to perform Jinzen while in Bankai. This made the Captain Commander nod in appreciation and understanding. He told me that Jinzen was the right method of truly learning the properties of the Zanpakuto. I told the old man that Ichigo completed Jinzen in three months, learning the Final Getsuga Tensho and having his Bankai Zanpakuto spirit completely merging with his inner Hollow, creating a new spirit with no name.

Their battle in Ichigo's mind would last three months, non-stop battling. Once entering the third month Ichigo would be stabbed through the stomach by his own Zanpakuto spirit. But it wouldn't damage Ichigo, it wouldn't hurt him, not at all.

While Ichigo was performing Jinzen in Bankai form Gin Ichimaru and Sosuke Aizen were both threatening and fooling around with Ichigo's spiritually aware human friends. It took a while, but when Ichigo arrived, he would not be able to be detected by normal means. His reiatsu would be non-existent. Or more correctly, it couldn't be detected by anyone, simply because it was too huge. That surprised Yamamoto so much that he actually was taken aback, visibly. "That hasn't happened before. How is that possible?" he asked me. He did do so politely, of course, knowing that I could withhold any information if I so desired.

"He becomes a transcendental being. Not quite human, not quite Zanpakuto, not quite Shinigami, not quite Visored, not quite Hollow. He becomes a complete soul, fully merged with his Zanpakuto and Hollow. He is able to grow even more, because of his merging with his own personal inner Hollow, and he is able to do feats unimaginable due to his merging with his own Zanpakuto. I will explain to you why his reiatsu cannot be detected," that got the attention I wanted from the Captain Commander. "Like a two dimensional being cannot interfere with a third dimensional being, Ichigo Kurosaki becomes something more than just a Visored with extremely high reiatsu. He becomes a complete transcendental being, transcending Shinigami, Zanpakuto, Hollow, Visored, Human, Plus, or Arrancar. Maybe even shinobi. I don't know. I don't know what his race would be, but if I had to choose, it would be transcendental. Nothing else."

Yamamoto took a minute to compose himself. Then he nodded for me to continue.

I did. I had told him of Rangiku Matsumoto's grievous injury by Ayon's hand, and would then be healed by the Third Division's Lieutenant, Kira Izuru. Rangiku wouldn't be fully healed, but she would nonetheless enter Soul Society to go after Gin. Gin would notice her arrival and deal with her through Hakufuku, completely hiding her reiatsu from detection, thus knocking her out and saving her from a sure death by Aizen's hand.

I then told him of Gin's betrayal of Aizen. I told him that Gin's Bankai was actually a poison type Zanpakuto, able to completely bypass Hierro or any other defence. It would eat anything in its path. Yamamoto wasn't surprised by Gin's choice of hiding his Zanpakuto's true ability. He was, after all, comparable to a snake. And snakes take their victims by surprise. Or so I believed, at least.

Gin would then become slightly wounded when he took the Hogyouku from Aizen. It wouldn't do any good. Aizen would mortally wound Gin by tearing off his left arm after giving him a slash across his chest. Rangiku would then arrive at the scene, shedding tears like nobody's business for Gin's demise. Aizen's surprise at Rangiku's survival was virtually non-existent. But as he approached Matsumoto, Ichigo would arrive, with his father on his shoulder.

After a brief reconciliation with his friends, Ichigo would forcibly make Aizen relocate themselves to another position in Soul Society. Aizen would battle with Ichigo for a few minutes, and then Ichigo would turn the tide completely by using the Final Getsuga Tensho, becoming Getsuga.

From there, I said that I couldn't tell anymore, since I had already told the Captain Commander everything necessary for him to know. It was the at the battle in fake Karakura town that I wanted to change things. Or perhaps I could change the storyline without influencing too much. Maybe I could make Ichigo perform Jinzen before the invasion of Las Noches.

Hey, that's actually a real good idea. Maybe I could stop time, or at least slow it down, with a shinobi exclusive technique, and then let him perform Jinzen while in Bankai.

I ended the meeting with the Captain Commander with a brief, "That's all I have to tell you, Captain Commander Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto."

The Captain Commander nodded.

Just then, an explosion rocked the entire area. "So," I drawled, "Who's fighting?"

Old man Yamamoto sighed, "It is Captain Kenpachi Zaraki against one of the invaders. Judging by the strength of the reiatsu of the invader, and what you have told me, I assume that it is Ichigo Kurosaki," he told me.

I nodded in confirmation, "That should be just about right. Uryuu Ishida should be the one against that mad Captain, Mayuri Kurotsuchi. The relationship between Ishida and Nemu Kurotsuchi should bloom from there," I said. I scoffed, "Well," I began, "Not really. It's more or less a confirmation of Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi's madness, and the abuse Nemu Kurotsuchi goes through on a daily basis because of her mad father," I looked straight into the old man's eyes. "I suggest putting restraints on Mayuri Kurotsuchi and reinstating Kisuke Urahara as Captain of Twelfth Division once the crisis with Aizen is over. It would benefit all, especially Nemu Kurotsuchi. While she might be traumatized by losing her father, I believe that with extensive care, she will be able to get out of her shell. For the benefit of all, you undoubtedly understand," I finished. I was slightly concerned of Nemu, seeing as she was abused by her so called father. I didn't like abuse, especially not when it came to abusive parents. In this case, I didn't like the mad scientist. I never liked mad scientists to begin with. They always came through to me as very... mad, I guess the best word for it would be.

But I would save as many people as possible. I would definitely save both Tia Harribel's Fracción and herself. Just because I could. Besides, Tia Harribel was attractive, to say the very least.

"Thank you for telling me this vital information. I will see what I can do to properly accommodate you and your fellow shinobi, Shinji Takuma," the red eyed Captain Commander said.

I was really grateful for his hospitality, everything considered.

* * *

><p>"Where have you been all this time, Takuma-san?" Konan calmly asked me once I got back to the house we occupied.<p>

I smiled kindly at her, closing my eyes in the process. It made me miss the blush on her cheeks, though. "Well, I've been speaking to the Captain Commander about the future of this universe's timeline," I said, opening my eyes to see Konan's own beautiful grey eyes.

She had controlled her blushing, and had returned to her calm persona. "I see," she said, before she turned around and went up the stairs.

I looked at her exposed back blankly. Something had to be wrong if she was that emotionless. "Something wrong, Konan?" I asked her carefully.

She stopped on the stairs. She was silent for a moment, and since her back was turned towards me I didn't see the heavy blush she had on her face. "No. Nothing is wrong. Everything is alright," she said with no emotion.

I was slightly taken aback. What could be wrong now? "Seriously," I said and approached her. I laid a hand on her shoulder once I was by her side. She curiously enough turned her head so I didn't see her face. "What's wrong?" I asked, careful and kind at the same time. I didn't want to anger an S-class shinobi, just because I wasn't careful and wanted to know what was wrong on a whim. "If it's anything I can do to make things better, tell me, and I will do whatever I can to make things better. As long as it is in my power, I will do it," I promised to her. I didn't see her sad eyes and her pink blush.

Without knowing, I had reminded her of Yahiko and Nagato at the same time. Because of my Rinnegan and my attitude, I reminded her of Nagato. Because of my kindness and my willingness to do anything for her, I reminded her of Yahiko. It made her sad, knowing that she had lost her friends. She was silent for a few more minutes, silence I didn't want to break. Then she turned around and looked straight into my eyes.

She was crying.

I widened my eyes in surprise and put my other hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong, Konan? Why are you crying?" I said, clueless about her sorrow.

She blinked her tears away and looked away from my eyes. She couldn't bear looking at them. I had the Rinnegan, it reminded her of Nagato, one of her lost, and best, friends. I was kind to her, doing whatever was necessary to make sure she was happy and safe. Like Yahiko.

Then she sobbed.

I didn't know what to do, so I did the only thing that came to my mind. I hugged her as tightly as I could without hurting her.

She hugged back and cried silently into my shoulder. I rubbed her back in comfort, letting her know I was there for her. I whispered into her ear softly, "It's alright, I'm here for you, Konan. I'm here. No one will hurt you. No one will ever hurt you ever again. I promise you that."

I didn't see it, but Haku was at the foot of the stairs, smiling at us. Then he turned around and walked into the living room, looking for Zabuza to tell him the adorable – in his mind at least – event.

It didn't take long for Konan to recompose herself. Once she did she wiped her tears away and face me with a calm expression on her face. She was pretty, I noticed, even with her red and puffy eyes and tear streaks going from her eyes to her chin. She sniffed once, letting air enter her system. She pushed herself away from me and said, "I'm fine now."

Then without warning she kissed me. On the lips.

Well...

Talk about surprising.

I widened my eyes in great surprise. I didn't lean into the kiss, but neither did I lean away from it. Slowly I got into it. I returned the kiss. I let her know I was there for her. I let her know that if she needed a kiss, if she needed a hug, if she needed anything, I would be there for her. I let her know through that single kiss. Then, after I reached that conclusion, I leaned into it, putting a hand behind her head to lightly push her lips onto mine.

She opened her mouth and licked my lips. I understood the message and opened my mouth, letting her tongue enter my mouth. I too let my tongue enter her mouth, and then a dance of tongues began. Well, I wasn't about to complain about having a sexy girlfriend who was attractive as hell. She was my favourite female character from the Naruto universe, and I would be there for her. No matter if she was fictional or factual. I didn't care. All I cared about at that specific moment was her. I wanted to let her know I was there for her. She needed a friend, or a boyfriend in this case, and I would be there.

I would be there to hold her, to make sure she was comfortable. To love her.

And I told her that. All through one kiss.

* * *

><p>I entered the living room. It had been a day since that kiss, and we hadn't talked at all with each other. Konan would occasionally look at me, blush, and avert her eyes. But otherwise we hadn't talked to each other. We weren't awkward, it was more of a companionable silence, if anything. Sometimes, when we thought that Zabuza and Haku weren't looking, or if they weren't present, we would share a quick kiss. But otherwise, silence permeated the air.<p>

I didn't know it, but Haku had spread the message to Zabuza. Haku wanted to let his 'master' know about as many things as possible, seeing as Zabuza was his 'master' and all that. I was pretty sure that they were homosexual, but I wasn't about to complain. I mean, really now, it wasn't any of my business that they shared a futon with each other. Well, I didn't know if they did, but it sure sounded like they had lots of fun with each other that night.

I entered my own bedroom. I was sleepy. It was night, there was a full moon on the beautiful night sky. I was about to undress to enter my futon, but I heard a timid knock on my door. I raised one of my eyebrows in wonderment. I wondered who it could be. But judging by the timidity of the knock, I would guess that it was Konan. Just because I thought so, I believed that I deserved a small beating on my head. Nothing else.

I approached the door and opened it. Sure enough, there was Konan. But she was in a bathrobe, a yukata. I blushed as she took hold of my hands and put them on her breasts.

Well, I told myself. I wasn't about to complain about having sex with an extremely attractive and busty Naruto character. Especially seeing as she was my favourite female character right behind Tia Harribel.

Yeah, we had sex in my bedroom. Not a word was shared between us while we were making love. Not a single word. Just gasps, moans and other pleasurable sounds were shared between us.

At that moment I decided that I loved my life.

* * *

><p>I awoke with something heavy, or somewhat heavier than a paperweight, leaning on my chest. That was weird-<p>

Oh... right. I had slept with Konan.

Oh well. I wasn't a prude anymore, so I didn't mind at all. She was attractive as hell, she was sexy as hell, she was Konan. I smiled a small smile when I looked at her peaceful face. She was so cute at the same time as well. I could spend my entire life just looking at her with that peaceful and serene face.

It was decided. I was going to make sure that nothing and no one would ever hurt Konan. Ever again. Not Madara, not Aizen, not anyone. Not even Zabuza or Haku. I would protect her with my dying breath.

I loved her that much.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Please vote in my poll. It will affect the future of this fiction.  
>Also, no, I won't abandon Tia Harribel. It seems that most reviewers won't mind if I choose both. ;)<p> 


	48. Fourty Eighth

**Author's Note:** The poll is still going!  
>The poll <em>will<em> have an effect on the future of my piece of fiction!  
>Also, people don't seem to mind if I choose both Tia Harribel <em>and<em> Konan. A ménage a trois, if you will.

* * *

><p>I didn't rise up from my position. I didn't want to disturb Konan's sleep. She was sleeping on my chest, breathing in and out slowly.<p>

I heard someone talking downstairs, and being the curious me, I very gently pushed Konan away from my chest. She did groan and moan in disapproval, but I, once again very gently, pulled on her arms so she wouldn't wake up. I got up and clothed myself in a newly gotten white kimono. This one had a large kanji for luck decorating its back in a golden colour. Looking behind me, I saw that Konan was hogging the entire comforter to herself, wrapping herself in it.

I smiled fondly and approached her sleeping, and naked, form. Gently I pulled on the comforter so that it covered her nudity completely. I looked around and found her clothes. Carefully and soundlessly I folded them together and put them by the side of the futon so that should she wake up she would find her clothing right beside her. I found that to be a convenient manner to do things in. I would have left a note, but I didn't think that she was _that_ kind of woman. A woman who demanded romantic relations for her pleasure. No, it didn't seem like her. Not really, anyway.

I opened the shogi door, went past its border and closed it again without drawing any attention to myself. For footwear I only wore a set of black tabi socks. I had made sure that I wasn't using geta sandals. While _I_ considered the clacks the sandals made whenever it hit the floor to be music I knew that other people considered it somewhat annoying, and it would be highly impractical to wear them around a sleeping person. In this case, Konan.

I went downstairs and into the living room. Sure enough, there was Zabuza and Haku, both smiling at each other with a knowing smile once they saw me. Why in the world were they smiling like that? I wondered what it could be. I wanted to know what it was, but hey, if they wouldn't tell me then never mind. "What's so funny?" I asked obliviously.

Haku giggled and held out a hand towards Zabuza. Zabuza sighed and put a few bills into Haku's hand. I wondered why he did that. Maybe it was a bet of some sort that Haku won? Maybe it was something that Zabuza lost in? It wasn't uncommon for the two male love birds to bet on things, as I discovered when we were living together in Rukongai. But usually they included me in their little bets. Not that one, it seemed. Oh well, it wasn't about to spell out the destruction of all humanity that I wasn't included in a bet. "I win," Haku gladly said, smiling widely and closing his eyes.

"Yeah yeah, suck it up, Haku," Zabuza huffed, crossing his arms and diverting his gaze to some random object in the room. I wasn't about to follow his gaze, though. I wasn't really interested in knowing what he was looking at.

"Seriously," I said, making Haku and Zabuza shift their attention to me, "What was the bet this time?" I asked them, raising one of my eyebrows in question.

Haku was about to answer when there was a loud explosion that shook the house a little. Rushing outside to the garden, I saw the Sokyoku hill. It had a large cleaving in it, almost like the damage a Getsuga Tensho would do.

"Soon. It'll be soon."

I took my time to watch the spectacles of reiryoku being continuously pushed around like a fireworks show. Zabuza and Haku joined my side to watch the spectacle of reiryoku. Their eyes were wide because of the grand show of reiryoku being pushed around, and even wider by the white and blue explosion that made a wide ring of dust and an explosion or reiryoku in the form of reiatsu. Though we knew we were shinobi, thus resistant to reiatsu and all things spiritual, it was almost as if we felt the pressure of the battle between Byakuya Kuchiki and Ichigo Kurosaki.

I smirked at the stunned faces of Zabuza and Haku. "The battle is between a Captain and an invader of Seireitei," I said knowingly. It was revenge for not telling me what the previous bet was for. Well, not really. Whatever.

That sure got the attention of Zabuza and Haku. They were staring at me, Haku with wide eyes and Zabuza with narrowed, calculating ones. "Which Captain is it? And who is the invader that's fighting the Captain?" Zabuza said. He was probably getting tired of my always knowing what was going on. I would also be tired if someone always knew what was going on, like Aizen. He always seemed to have an answer for everything. But that was a pure and utter lie. He didn't know anything.

I decided to cut him some slack, so I revealed the information. It wasn't like it was critical or anything, right? Of course not. I smirked, "The Captain is the Captain of the Sixth Division, Byakuya Kuchiki of the 'esteemed'," queue air quotes, "Kuchiki family. His opponent is the head invader, Ichigo Kurosaki. He is here to save Rukia Kuchiki, a friend of his," I saw the slight look of disbelief crossing Zabuza's face. "Yeah, I know. He's willing to invade a supernatural organization just to rescue a friend from execution. I don't get him either, but I guess that's what makes him unique. He has achieved Bankai in less than three days, something that is completely unheard of except from a former Captain, Kisuke Urahara. He completed the Bankai training in three days with the help of a glorified training dummy or something."

"How is it you know-" Zabuza cut himself off, "Right, another universe. I forgot," he finished.

I smiled at him, "Just because I'm from another universe where this and your world is a manga individually doesn't mean that I know everything. For example, I don't know the name of the Sage of the Six Paths from your original universe. I don't know the details of his battle with the Ten Tailed Beast either, neither do I know the origin or the secrets of chakra to begin with. All I know is that Naruto is the protagonist of the story, and a lot of the storyline itself. As I said, I don't know everything about everything," I finished.

Zabuza sighed and began to walk back into the house. "Whatever. I'll go sleep. See you later, Takuma, Haku."

Haku looked forlornly at Zabuza's back, but otherwise composed himself to look back at the battle. "Shouldn't we be there or something?" he asked me.

I chuckled good naturedly, "No. If we were there there could be several differences. For example, the traitorous Captain, Sosuke Aizen, could kidnap one of us. One of the traitors could have gotten an order from Aizen to kill us on sight. There are simply too many variables for us to be there. If we were there, the original timeline would be too messed up. Us just being here has messed with the timeline significantly to begin with. So no, we will not interfere any more than we," I chuckled, embarrassed, and scratched the back of my neck, "Or rather, I, already have. I have exposed the true nature of shinobi to someone, as in the Captain Commander," I added quickly when I noticed Haku's shocked look. Haku wasn't exactly good to hide his emotions, was he now? "That alone has changed a lot of the timeline of this universe."

Haku nodded in response and began to scratch his chin, wondering, "I see. So if we were to be told of the timeline we could join heads for any possible variables that could occur. However, I do know that it is best that we stay low for now, at least."

I nodded in confirmation, "Yes, indeed. I don't really know if I have to repeat myself to you, regarding the retelling of this universe's few, about six or so, months that the story revolves in. Besides, I'd rather you wouldn't do anything that would risk your well being, Konan-chan," I said. Without turning around I knew, I had sensed, that Konan was right behind me. She was probably looking at me with either a sad look, an indifferent, calm look or a slightly happy look. I didn't care. I loved her either way.

I smiled then turned around. Sure enough there was Konan, fully clothed, smiling lightly at me. That was good. If she were happy I was happy. "I'm glad that you decided to share info. However," then she retained her calm look, though I swear there was a hint of happiness in her expression. Of course there was. She had just gotten a lover, a rather handsome and competent lover, but a lover nonetheless.

Well, good to see that my confidence was still intact as ever.

Konan took a step forward, leaning herself towards me. "However," she said rather huskily, she was quite sexy, too. Haku did not remain standing, though. He went inside the house to stay with Zabuza and not interrupt anything that would otherwise happen between the two of us. "I think that you could do a repeat performance of _last night_..." she said, once again with a husky tone.

Hot damn she was sexy! I almost couldn't contain myself from ravaging her completely. I stroked her cheek with my hand and kissed her other one. Then I made my mouth get real close to her ear. Then I whispered into her ear, "You really know how to get me riled up, Konan-chan."

She blushed but then reluctantly put on a calm façade on her face. "I see. Thank you for the compliment. How about we take this to the bedroom?" she asked with a whispering voice, with a very, and I mean very, slight smirk on her face. Hot damn she was hot! I wouldn't mind pouncing on her right there and then. But common sense made me refrain from doing so. Wait a minute... there is no such thing as common sense! Maybe it was just my love for her that made me restrain myself.

My eyebrow rose. I briefly glanced behind me to the battle that happened on the Sokyoku hill. Somehow, I just knew that Aizen had just revealed himself. But I didn't care at that moment. I had another chance to make love to a very attractive individual by the name of Konan, and I wouldn't let that chance go for the world.

We both entered my bedroom kissing something fiercely. We both had our tongues dance a ferocious dance, twirling around each other and touching each other with every opportunity.

I broke off the heated kiss shortly, just to say, "I'm a lucky man."

And so the love making began.

* * *

><p>Aizen had revealed himself a day ago, and the invaders of Seireitei were ultimately forgiven, as well as Rukia Kuchiki's execution would be stayed.<p>

I sat on the only couch in the living room, bearing a soft smile that was directed at the woman of my dreams. On my lap was a currently sleeping Konan's head, and I was lightly stroking her unique and magnificent blue hair. It was soft, like silk even. She must have had taken good care of it while I wasn't looking. But to be honest, I didn't care much if she had or not. I would have loved having my hands in it anyway. Well, I loved having my hands in _her_, too. But that thing was for a completely different time. Not suited for that moment at all.

After all, we weren't alone. The Captain Commander and his Lieutenant were sitting on the pillows by the round table, and they were currently drinking green tea Haku had served them. Haku too was sitting on one of the pillows by the wooden table. Zabuza was outside somewhere, training himself in whatever it was that he wanted to do. He probably had a Shinigami escort show him the road to Eleventh Division, so that he could train there. Zabuza was a guy like that. He wanted to train by doing, not by hitting the books. Something I was fond of, actually. Hitting books, that is.

"Shinji Takuma," the Captain Commander said, earning himself my attention and gaze. "You were right. Aizen was the traitor. I believe in you now." That made me smile wider. He didn't believe me beforehand? Oh well, I understood that it was difficult to come to terms with someone being able to see the future. "However," he added, "I believe that there is still something that you are hiding from me," he declared. That made my smile slip completely off my face. "What is it you're hiding from me, shinobi?"

Haku had a nervous expression on his effeminate face. He should totally try and teach himself restraint when it came to emotions. But oh well, that could be handled at another time. I sighed. "Fine, I will tell you," then I looked straight into Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto's squinting eyes. "As long as you and your Lieutenant keep it as a skeleton in the closet, I will have no qualms with telling you the secret of my knowing the future and some of the past."

Yamamoto nodded gravely, just like he was wont to do. His Lieutenant, whose name I have yet to remember, also nodded in confirmation to my condition to keep whatever I said secret. Haku already knew what I was going to tell, as well as Konan. So if Konan was faking her sleep, then there wouldn't be too severe repercussions. Or at least I hoped so. I mean, there was the fact that she could deny me some loving. There was that... but never mind. I would tell the Captain Commander what he wanted to know nevertheless. Simply because he asked.

I sighed again. In the words of a wise, wise man, this was troublesome. "Very well. I will tell you about the fact that I am not from this universe."

This did not take the Captain Commander aback, though it did take his Lieutenant by surprise. I believed that Yamamoto already had discovered some form of dimensional travel, or a dimensional traveller. It wouldn't have surprised me, seeing as he was over a thousand years old. Or if I remembered correctly, he was about two thousand and one hundred years old. That was old, thus experienced, thus knowledge about a great deal of things. Perhaps including dimensional travel. "What do you mean 'not from this universe'?" Yamamoto's Lieutenant asked sceptically.

Yamamoto's hand rose to stop his own Lieutenant from interrupting. "Do not interrupt, Lieutenant Sasakibe," he commanded. Yamamoto always commanded respect, whether it was begrudging or willing, he got respect. Simply because he was both old and immensely powerful and skilled in the art of combat. Besides, I had forgotten Sasakibe's name, and now I knew it, thanks to Yamamoto's interference.

Sasakibe bowed deeply – twice – in apology to both me and his Captain Commander. I sighed again. This was far too troublesome. I might just reveal it to everyone that I was a dimensional traveller and be done with it. "I am not from this universe. What I mean that the universe you live in currently is called 'Bleach', made by a man whose pen name is 'Kubo Tite'. To make it simple; the world of the living, the world of Soul Society, Hell, and Hueco Mundo, are all one universe, yet different planes of existence at the same time. Like sub-universes. Hueco Mundo, Hell and Soul Society, if we take the world of the living as the main world, are all sub-universes. Hueco Mundo, Hell, Soul Society and the world of the living, they are all one universe. As I've said, this universe we're in is called Bleach. How I know this is going to be explained." Repeating this to Yamamoto and Sasakibe was far too tiring all of a sudden. What was wrong with me? How could I be so emotionally drained now? I didn't know, and I wouldn't figure it out. And it wasn't of big consequence that I was emotionally drained at that moment anyway. I continued, "I come from the same plane of existence as Kubo Tite, a man who draws and writes manga for money and fame, as well as because he wants to and enjoys it. His most popular piece is Bleach, the universe we live in now. All thought out by one mortal man."

The more I explained the more tense Sasakibe's body got. It was almost as if he was preparing to attack, or to protest or something. But I persevered and continued explaining. "Are you familiar with the multi-universe theory? The theory that there is an endless amount of universes? Where each thought creates another universe instantly? A universe where the laws of physics can be as screwed up as Mayuri Kurotsuchi's mind? It doesn't matter if you aren't familiar with it or not. Because from where I came from, this universe is entirely a piece of fiction. Nothing more, nothing else."

"Preposterous!" the Captain Commander's Lieutenant shouted. "How are we existing then? How are we living, breathing if what you say is true?"

Before Yamamoto could rectify his Lieutenant's mistake, I quipped mirthfully at Sasakibe's mistake. "Didn't you hear me mentioning the multi-universe theory? For every thought a new universe based around that thought alone is created. The more that is built around that thought the more that universe is developed. If the thought is left alone, then that universe will develop in its own way. Since Kubo Tite created you in his own image you are all speaking the same language and are humans, or at least created in the human image. Therefore you have a heart, you have a set of lungs, you have two kidneys and you have a brain as well. I have no idea where the idea of Hollows came from, but at least the Menos Vasto Lorde were created in the image of humans with morbidities on their person."

I took a deep breath and summarized the entire speech I just gave out.

"Basically, your existence is based on a manga."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I just had a revelation! One is an agnostic if one believes in the multi-universe theory! If what I said was true then we are truly created in the image of someone else. Perhaps the big bang is the happening of someone whose imagination is extremely wild. Of course, I believe that the 'thought' of either humanity or some other race has been left alone, thus creating a chaotic and random universe where 'randomity' (that's not a word, by the way) and chaos happens. You follow me?

But alas, the **poll is still going strong! There have been eleven individual voters!** And I would gladly accept more of you. Anyone who logs in can vote.  
>Also, I want to thank nartog again for reviewing. He's awesome! :D I just wished that he createdlogged in so that I could privately respond to his review.

But that is not to diminish the reader's importance! You are awesome just the way you are. I believe in all of you for reading. I am almost getting my groove done, though, since I haven't taken the Bleach timeline to heart after the invasion of Soul Society and before the invasion of Las Noches. (I have researched. It is _Las_ Noches, not _Los_ Noches. Not that anyone mentioned that, I just thought to put that out there)

Then there's you. Not you, but you. You, the reader. I don't care that you don't review. Well, no, that's a lie, I really do care. But I am grateful that I get so many views. If you review while logged in I promise to respond to you. Except if you have me on Skype, then it's not _guaranteed_, but I will see what I can do.

I will not respond to anonymous reviews, though. I don't feel like it's right to respond to them in author's notes.  
>Also, I need feedback to know what I'm doing wrong so I won't make the same mistake at a later date. EVA-Saiyajin (I don't know if I spelled that right! D:) said that Shinji loving Konan <em>that<em> much that quickly was unrealistic. I fully agree with him and I have only one lame excuse for that; Shinji was a fan of Konan. But as I said, that is a lame excuse. Not befitting of a true comeback.

Also, this chapter is dedicated to you. Yes, you. Point at yourself. This chapter, along with the entire story, is dedicated to you, the reader. Because I simply love you the way you are. You have no need to change the way you are just to fit people's needs.

Wow, that's the longest author's note I have written. But it's all important.

TL;DR version: You're awesome for reading this!


	49. Ichigo And Company

**Author's note:** The poll is still going for those who haven't voted yet. As a quick update, the two most voted on universes will be used for the future of this fan fiction.

* * *

><p>Sasakibe did turn to his Captain Commander for answers when I was done explaining to them the complexities of the multi-universe theory.<p>

Yamamoto, however, did not reply to his Lieutenant's call for answers. He only stared directly into my wary eyes.

I turned away from his gaze and looked straight at the sleeping Konan on my lap. I continued stroking her hair. Konan sighed in her sleep as I had my hand in her hair. It was so romantic for her to sleep on my lap like that. That she trusted me to the extent where she would even sleep next to me spoke volumes of how much she trusted me. After all, she was an S class shinobi, someone who managed to kill Tobi. Granted, Tobi used Izanagi right before he died, so he managed to survive through the massive explosions that Konan had made, but she still managed to at least kill off Tobi's body, just not his almost, if not, fully corrupted soul. Therefore, seeing as she was a kunoichi, she would be wary amongst anyone and everyone. However, she trusted me with her life by sleeping on my lap, somewhere where I would be able to kill her without any struggle. Of course I wouldn't kill her though.

I was truly a lucky man for having her as a lover.

I smiled softly at Konan's sleeping and peaceful face. She was truly beautiful. Though, granted, she was between my legs, and she was even more beautiful when her mouth was open wide and sucking on-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

_Anyway_, considering the explanation I had just given the Captain Commander and his Lieutenant, I was surprised that the old man hadn't gotten a heart attack or something, considering his old age and all. He was, after all, well over two thousand years old. His Lieutenant I could understand passing through the explanation without any health problems, but I didn't expect Yamamoto to just breeze through the entire thing without as much as a single outburst. But perhaps it was just that Yamamoto was just perceiving, neutralizing and identifying any threat to Soul Society and the world of the living. He was the kind of person who would defend his homeland and whatever he would be given responsibility of with his very life. He wanted to eliminate all threats that were posed against his responsibilities. In this case it would be Soul Society and the world of the living as a whole.

Therefore I determined that he wouldn't be a threat to my precious person. That person being Konan, of course. But neither did I want him to hurt or otherwise harm or debilitate Zabuza or Haku. They were my friends, and I was sure that neither of them would want any harm to befall either me or Konan. Konan's well being was more important than my own, but I still wanted to live, thank you very much.

"Shinji Takuma," the Captain Commander said with a low voice as to not disturb the sleeping beauty that was Konan. I turned my head to look at him. "Who are you? What is your name?" he asked. I was about to raise my eyebrow and ask him what he meant, but he held up a hand to stop me. "Your _real_ identity. Your _real_ name. What is it? Who are you?"

I was stunned to silence. Why would he want to know my real name? Why would the old guy want my real identity when I identified myself as Shinji Takuma? What made it all worse was that I didn't know my real name. I didn't know who I _really_ was. But still, why would he want my real name? What made the name I had now not real? Voicing my questioning thoughts would be the best option. Besides, I wanted to train Ichigo so that he would see that he wasn't strong enough to challenge an Espada in the future without the help of his inner Hollow.

I looked with a hardened gaze at the Captain Commander. "You want to know my real name? Let me tell you something first. I believe that in order to travel between dimensions like I have, one must lose something in return. I have lost my name, not my memories." I shook my head. "For the life of me I cannot remember my true name. In order to travel the multi-universe, one must lose something in return. That is the natural order of things, I believe. One must be given a price in order to travel through universes. Be it your gender, your sex, your eyes, your name, or your very memories. There is always a price. It doesn't matter what one does. I believe I was incredibly lucky when I only lost my name, not my memories or eyes. In fact, I gained more than I lost when I travelled through dimensions. For some reason I retain those powers. I do not know how or why, but there should be a deity that must be watching over me if I am able to retain my powers. From what I know, deities aren't willing to interact with mortals, no matter what." I took a deep breath. "And I believe I know one who has the potential to become a deity."

That made Sasakibe to be taken by surprise. "A mortal has-" he shouted, but he was interrupted immediately when I glared heavily at him and directed some of my fake killing intent on him specifically.

"Be quiet. Don't wake up Konan. If she wakes up I won't be held responsible for what will happen to you by my hand. She needs her rest," I ordered him to shut up. The Captain Commander held up against the killing intent I flooded out of me, not even breaking a single sweat. But he was old and wise, experienced. He should be able to hold up against the minuscule killer intent I set out. "Now, you were saying, Lieutenant?" I asked quietly, having let up on my killing intent.

Sasakibe sat down, sweating profusely. He coughed into his hand lightly, trying to recompose himself after that slightly traumatizing event of being exposed to my killing intent. My killing intent definitely had the desired effect, making people stay quiet. "We-Well, I was about to ask how a mortal is able to become a deity. And who would that be, if what you say is true?"

I scratched the back of my neck. "Well, not really a deity, actually. More like a transcendental being."

Yamamoto shook his head, "I do not see the difference between a mortal who has transcended, and a deity. The deities must have come from somewhere." He nodded. "Continue," he ordered.

I nodded my head curtly. "That 'transcendental' being is Ichigo Kurosaki."

That curiously enough didn't surprise the Captain Commander. However, Sasakibe did widen his eyes considerably. But he remained quiet otherwise. His experience with my killing intent was something he didn't want a repeat performance of. Neither did I want to risk waking up Konan with my killing intent. Granted, she could detect if my killing intent was fake or not, seeing as she had been exposed to both in her career as a kunoichi, but I didn't know how. But oh well, I wasn't about to go and ask her something that could bring back bad memories in her life.

"I have a request," I said after the silence had pervaded the air for over a minute.

The white and black clad Shinigami Captain Commander nodded his head. "Let us hear your request."

"I wish to go to the invader Ichigo Kurosaki. I wish to train him. I want to show him that despite the fact that he can challenge some Captains with sheer willpower and strength of his reiryoku and reiatsu, he cannot defeat anyone who is more skilled than he is, faster than he is, stronger than he is, better than he is. I want to fight him, to show him that he isn't all mighty. And then I want to train him."

"What will that achieve?" the over two thousand years old man asked me.

I smiled. Or more like I smirked. "He will become a transcendental being as soon as I'm done with him. You may ask how he will become a transcendental being, and I have a plan. The Dangai."

That made even the aged Captain Commander widen his eyes, showing the world his rarely seen red eyes. "But the Kototsu. It will not-" he interrupted himself. Then he squinted his eyes again. "I see... you intend to use chakra instead of reiatsu to destroy the Kototsu. And then you want someone of Captain level or above to stop the current of time in the Precipice World, so that Ichigo Kurosaki can train himself up to proper Captain level. Am I correct in that assumption?"

I raised both my eyebrows in surprise. Who would have thought that the Captain Commander could see through my plan so quickly? Of course. I shook my head in self disappointment. He was the freaking Captain Commander. He was supposed to be more perceptive than a fucking something-that-is-very-perceptive. I grinned and nodded, "That's almost right, actually. I just want him to perform Jinzen. But the one I want to stop the flow of time in the Dangai is you, Captain Commander."

The really fucking old Captain Commander nodded in understanding. "I see. I accept your request and will deliver the message to Ichigo Kurosaki. I will personally inform him of his coming training, and inform him that while time will have passed for a long time in the Precipice World, there will have gone a day at most in the rest of the sub-universes Hueco Mundo, Soul Society, and most importantly, the world of the living."

I smiled a genuine smile and bowed in appreciation to the Captain Commander. "Thank you, Captain Commander Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto." I looked straight into his squinting eyes. "You will not be disappointed in the training method. Trust me." I widened my eyes. "Oh yeah! There was something I forgot! Where are the invaders residing? I wish to speak with them."

The Captain Commander nodded at my second request. "The invaders are in the Fourth Division's barracks, resting and healing themselves up. I will take you there via Shunpo. I understand that you do not know where the individual Divisions are?"

I nodded. "That's right. Thank you," I said. While I had sent thousands of disguised shadow clones to investigate the lands of Seireitei, I hadn't exactly stayed conscious when the shadow clones had dispelled themselves, and I didn't have them memorize the individual placings of the Divisions. The only place that I knew where it was was the First Division's Captains' meeting hall. Nothing else. Oh well. Never mind.

I carefully took Konan's head off my lap and laid her head back down on the couch. I then took my newly gotten – and clean – white kimono off me, exposing the black, loose fitting shirt that I wore underneath it, and put it over Konan's body so that she wouldn't get cold any time soon. I then bowed down and kissed her forehead. I whispered, "I'll be back soon, Konan-chan."

Konan moaned silently and snuggled up in my kimono. "Shinji-kun," she whispered very quietly. I smiled softly at her. Even in her dreams she thought of me. How very romantic. I was a sap for romance when it came to the cute and the sexy.

I turned around and hardened my expression, still wearing my smile however. "Let's go."

* * *

><p>We arrived at the Fourth Division's barracks, and immediately every single Shinigami in sight, which were quite many, actually, bowed deeply at the Captain Commander. Some had fearful faces, others were indifferent, while some were nervous at seeing the old Captain Commander. I didn't take note of anyone, though. They were all nondescript Shinigami. Brown hair, black hair, some blond patch of hair here or there, brown eyes, black eyes, or green eyes. Very forgettable and standard. Nothing to remember. "Follow me, Shinji Takuma," the wise Captain Commander said, and then he started to walk to one of the many hallways of the Fourth Division's barracks.<p>

"Sure," I said nonchalantly. Some of the Shinigami around gasped in surprise when they heard my non-committal answer. They were probably internally outraged that someone would be so nonchalant around the Captain Commander. The thought made me smirk a smug smirk.

We entered a hallway, turned left, then left again, then right, then straight at an intersection. There. I saw Retsu Unohana standing outside a door and smiling towards us. "Welcome, Captain Commander, shinobi," she happily said, smiling and closing her dark blue eyes.

I smiled back at her and bowed once we, the Captain Commander and I, were within arm's reach of her. "Thank you, Captain Retsu Unohana," I politely said after I had bowed. I approached the door that lead to the room that hopefully had Ichigo and the rest of the invaders.

I looked into the room, and sure enough, there was Ichigo and his friends. Ichigo sat on a bed that was against the far wall and was resting with his wound that almost split him in half. Orihime Inoue looked like she had been fussing over Ichigo before we arrived, which made her look at me with wide eyes. Uryuu Ishida was bandaged a little bit up and was leaning against the far wall, about seven feet away from Ichigo's bed. He was looking at me with surprised, wary and calculating eyes, wearing his glasses as usual. Chad was sitting on a chair that was by the door, looking at me. Or I suspected he was looking at me. I couldn't tell because of his dark brown and thick hair. But his head was turned towards me, so I suspected that he was looking at me. Rukia and Renji were there as well, and they were looking at me with very wide and surprised eyes. They recognized me, apparently. I hadn't changed, after all. I didn't age while I had been in Soul Society. It had been more than eighty years since I had last seen Rukia and Renji. Or at least so I thought. It could also have been only a year, but I didn't really care too much.

"Shi-Shinji?" Rukia stammered. She stared wide eyed at my gently smiling face. She took a hesitating step forward, confused by my sudden appearance.

Renji was stunned into silence. He couldn't understand why I was there. How could I be there when I should have been in a coma that should have lasted still? That was what I thought that he was thinking. It was difficult to know what an empty head that was shaped like a pineapple was thinking.

"Hey, Rukia!" Ichigo loudly exclaimed, totally breaking the moment. He wasn't very tactful, that was for sure. "Who's this guy?"

Rukia's eye twitched severely, and then she slapped the top of Ichigo's head. Hard. "Idiot! Stop ruining the moment!" she yelled. In the dramatic reunion I didn't notice the Captain Commander and Captain Unohana having a serious talk about something behind my back. But to be honest, it wouldn't bother me.

Rukia turned back to me, her larger than normal eyes wider than they usually were. She was going to catch a fly with her mouth that wide open, too. I smirked at the thought and raised an eyebrow. "You know, you're going to catch a fly with your mouth open like that," I jokingly said. Not that I had seen any insects in Soul Society, but hey, the joke still stood proudly.

My voice seemed to have snapped Rukia out of her stupor. She bolted towards me and hugged my waist so tightly I had to channel earth chakra to harden my bones and organs. I was pretty sure she wanted to punish me for some reason, like that I hadn't fought for her while she was set to be executed or something like that. But she was fine now, and that was what was important.

Ishida adjusted his glasses with his finger, "I apologize for ruining the moment, Kuchiki, but I cannot help but notice something strange. I cannot sense a shred of reiatsu from this 'Shinji' you're hugging right now. It is impossible to completely hide your presence like he's doing. Also, I suggest letting up. He looks like he can't breathe."

Rukia snapped her eyes open and released me, blushing heavily and tilting her head down so that no one would see her blush. I breathed a sigh of relief. Despite channelling a considerable amount of earth natured chakra throughout my entire body to harden it to the point of steel, she still had the strength to almost crush my ribs. It was amazing, her strength. Rukia turned to Ishida and yelled, "Idiot! Don't ruin the moment!" Then she turned back to me and widened her eyes again. "You-You don't have any reiatsu, Shinji. What's wrong?" she asked, hesitant to know the answer, fearing that I would die or something like that.

I smirked and pushed her forehead with a single finger. "That is for me to know and for you to find out at some point or another," then I looked at Ichigo, who was, frankly speaking, looking quite out of place with his bandaged stomach and whatnot. "Ichigo Kurosaki," I said.

That snapped them all out of their stupor. Renji was the first to compose himself, "How do you know Ichigo's name?" he asked. He wasn't suspicious or anything, which was good. But I thought that revealing to them how I knew Ichigo's full name would cause quite a stir, and they wouldn't be able to keep it quiet long enough.

I smirked and looked disbelievingly at Renji. "Who doesn't know the guy who defeated Kenpachi _fucking_ Zaraki in battle? As well as Byakuya Kuchiki? And achieved Bankai in less than three days? Those achievements should all account for fame, don't you agree?" My swearing did make Orihime flinch a little, but I didn't really care. I mean, for all I cared, she was useless in battle, and basically a clumsy, ditzy clutz.

Renji was taken aback, and then he blushed a little bit, averted his eyes and said, "We-Well, it was a little bit suspicious if you knew everyone's names, wouldn't it?"

I laughed mirthfully. Yes, Renji's stupidity really was persistent throughout the timeline of Bleach. Renji's blush deepened at my laugh. "And pray tell, Renji Abarai," that made the entire room wary of me. How could I also know Renji's full name too? "What would you do if I told you that I knew every single person in here's full name? What would you possibly do? Would you harm me? Debilitate me? Maim me? Cause me humiliation by losing to you?" I smirked. I loved playing harmless mind games. It was fun.

Renji tensed his shoulders and and narrowed his eyes at me. "If you would cause harm to any of them, yes. I would battle you to the death. I will protect them all with my very life," he said, brimming with determination and valour.

I chuckled good naturedly and waved a hand around. "Relax, Renji. I'm just playing mind games on you," I said airily. I looked back at Ichigo. "Anyway, I have come here to tell you that you will train for a period of time in the Dangai with me and the Captain Commander, Ichigo Kurosaki."

That startled the entire room, even stopping the conversation between Captain of the Fourth Division, Retsu Unohana, and the Captain Commander of the First Division, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. "Wh-What?" Ichigo stammered.

I smirked. This was the perfect time to say _that_. "Did I stutter, brat? I said you'll be going to train with me and the Captain Commander in the Dangai Precipice World for an undetermined period of time."

"What good will that do? I don't have time for that! I have to go to school and protect my friends along with Karakura!" Ichigo loudly exclaimed.

I sighed deeply. I would have to explain to him that only an hour would have passed when roughly three months would have passed in the Dangai. "Here's the thing, Kurosaki," I said, pointing upwards with my finger. "I will tell you the short version since you're pretty stupid," I jokingly said.

"I'm not stupid!"

"Yes, you are," I said, glaring heavily at Ichigo. Ichigo, however, didn't flinch, not even when I directed some fake killing intent at him. He didn't even break a sweat. Nothing changed with his facial expression when I did that. Why was that? Why didn't he react to my killing intent? Oh well, whatever. I decided to continue with my speech. I didn't notice that the window beside the bed now had a black furred, yellow eyed cat sitting on its haunches in the window. "You charge in head first into Soul Society without as much as plan, other than the 'Go through the front door' plan. Which is a pathetic plan, by the way. You could have died when you faced Kenpachi Zaraki and Byakuya Kuchiki without a plan. You had to learn Bankai in order to as much as scratch Captain Byakuya. And the way you learned Bankai wasn't exactly the safest method to learn it, from what I hear." At that the cat stiffened and tensed. "However," I added when I saw that Ichigo was about to go on a rage induced rampage. My word stopped him from doing so. "It isn't entirely your fault. I would say that it was dangerous to send you and your friends in alone, therefore you had Yoruichi with you, a former Captain. Though I guess that Kisuke Urahara should have come with you to even out the scales. But _no_, he just had to stay back." I sighed. "How typical-"

I was interrupted by the black cat of whom I hadn't noticed until it interrupted me. "Who are you? How do you know all that?" it said in a deep, male voice. Its yellow eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

I looked at the cat, surprise written all over my face. I pointed at the cat and played oblivious. I obviously knew who the cat was. Yoruichi Shihoin. But I was going to play on the safe side for the moment. "Who's the talking cat?" I asked the stunned silent crowd.

Ishida was the first to recompose himself. "That 'cat' is Yoruichi Shihoin, Shinji-san."

I made an 'o' with my mouth. "I see," then I slapped myself on the head. "Of course! Yoruichi Shihoin, the only one – from my knowledge – who is able to transform into an animal. I didn't know it was a cat," I said, then I proceeded to scratch my chin. "But I wonder. Isn't Yoruichi Shihoin a woman? And the cat is speaking in a male voice." I snapped my fingers, "That's right! It's a trick, isn't it?"

I came to the conclusion that Yoruichi wasn't very pleased with me not answering her question, seeing as she scratched my face. "Ow," I said slowly, nursing the cut that I had just gotten on my cheek. Strangely, the cut wasn't bleeding. Well, I wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth by asking how. I saw Yoruichi sitting on her haunches and glaring at me with narrowed eyes. Oh, and she was sitting on the air. Right in front of my face. Normally I would have questioned how Yoruichi sat on the _freaking_ _air_, but this was Bleach. People could stand on air as it pleased them. As long as they had reiryoku, of course.

"You didn't answer my question. Who are you? How do you know all that? Ichigo and I haven't told anyone the method of how Ichigo got his Bankai," she said, still in her cat form.

I sighed and nursed my cut some more before I put the hand down. I looked seriously at Yoruichi's eyes, neither of us flinching at each other. Yoruichi's eyes, however, narrowed slightly more as the stare down went by. She must have had used reiatsu, and judging by the panting from Ishida, Orihime and Chad, she had. Though when she noticed – she hadn't averted her eyes from mine at all – she let up, noticing that I wasn't affected by reiatsu. I decided to answer her questions. "I am Shinji Takuma. I know all that because I am well informed. _How_ well informed I am, and _how_ I gain the information will be revealed should you be considered worthy in my eyes," I said sternly. "Yoruichi Shihoin. When you transform into your human form again, be sure to do so in private and with clothes within arm's reach," I said, smirking. Then I shrugged, "Or you could just as well transform now and be done with it. I won't complain, seeing as I already have seen plenty of women in the nude before." My statement made Orihime, Renji, Rukia, Ishida and especially Ichigo blush heavily. I couldn't tell if Chad was blushed or anything. Though his body language signified that he was at the very least embarrassed.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I really, really like that sentence "Did I stutter?" for some reason. I don't know why anyway. But still, it doesn't matter. I love you for reading! :D  
>Also, I know the ending was abrupt, but I'm beginning to lose my groove. D:<p> 


	50. Time Slows Down

**Author's note:** The poll is still going, and the top two of the fictional universes will be chosen.

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><p>I looked at the embarrassed faces of the individuals around me. Well, everyone in the room was taken aback and ashamed to know that I had seen several women naked before, everyone but Yoruichi, who was still looking at me as if I was the source of her anger or something like that. I sighed in disappointment. "Seriously, guys." My voice snapped the rest of the crew out of their stupor. "It's no big deal that I've seen a few women naked before. Honestly..." I drawled.<p>

"No big deal?" Ichigo yelled out, ignoring the stinging pain that shot through his waist.

I looked harshly at Ichigo. He flinched a little but otherwise returned the look with a flushed face. "Stop yelling like that. You'll aggravate your wounds," I calmly scolded. I guess that Konan's calmness must have had quickly rubbed off on me.

Ichigo probably burst a vein on his forehead in anger, but I interrupted him before he could go on a righteous tirade for the sake of all womankind. "Anyway, what I wanted to say was a short explanation of the Dangai Precipice World. In the Dangai, one hour in the real world are two thousand hours in the Dangai. That is roughly three months of training you can get in about an hour."

Everyone's eyes widened. "Then why haven't people been using it more, then?" Orihime asked me politely. As I expected, her tone was soft and kind. Just the kind for a pacifist. Something she was by heart. Not that I had anything against that, I just thought that kind of attitude would be useless on the battlefield.

I smiled gently at her, closing my eyes in the process. However, it wasn't I that answered her politely asked question. "Remember that thing that chased us while we were in the Dangai?" Ishida rhetorically asked. Of course they remembered. It'd be difficult to forget a thing such as the Kototsu, the cleaner of the Precipice World.

Reminding Orihime seemed to have scared her a little, as she began to act slightly more reclusive. "That's right. However," my voice snapped everyone's attention back to me. Something I had gotten used to, what with my knowing what would happen and all that. "With my powers, I am able to destroy it." I was confident that since I had chakra, not reiryoku, I was able to at least stall the Kototsu. Its purple mass would be destroyed. Aizen managed to destroy it with his power and dominance over the Hogyouku. So why should I manage to destroy it?

Rukia looked at me quizzically. "What kind of powers do you have, Shinji-san?" she asked.

I had debated internally while I had been walking to the room containing Ichigo and friends about whether or not I should let them know about my shinobi powers. I had quickly come to the conclusion that eventually, even the unseated Shinigami would know about my chakra. So why the hell not spread the news prematurely?

I smiled at Rukia. "I have a kind of power called 'chakra'."

Ichigo was taken aback. He widened his eyes and raised one of his eyebrows and lowered his other eyebrow questioningly. "What, from that manga called 'Naruto' or something?"

…

I blinked. Well, that was unexpected. But highly welcome. It would definitely be easier to move around if Ichigo and company knew about my powers. I was about to nod, but the Captain Commander beat me to it. "Shinobi Shinji Takuma does possess a power called chakra, yes."

He was standing right behind me, looming in the doorway. I turned my head around for a quick glance at the Captain Commander. I stepped aside so that he could enter the room, should he wish to. He was the Captain Commander, the most bad ass grandpa to ever walk the multi-universes. Well, in my ignorant opinion, anyway. Yamamoto stepped forward, and instantly Rukia and Renji were bowing deeply in deep respect for the Captain Commander. The wisest and strongest Shinigami yet. Or so I thought, at least. Until Ichigo would come along and decided to play around with Aizen through battle.

"Thanks for clarifying that, Captain Commander," I thanked politely. I was thankful of the Captain Commander backing my claim up.

But now to wonder why Ichigo recognized chakra as an energy from a similar manga called 'Naruto'. There could be the obvious one that Kubo Tite thought of asking Masashi Kishimoto-sama about crossing Bleach over with Naruto – or the opposite – and that had the effect that Naruto then became a manga in the Bleach universe, since there was no possible way that Naruto and Bleach would smoothly cross over. Unless it would happen. In which case there would be serious criticism to it. Whether it'd be positive or negative remains to be seen.

Though I didn't know at the moment that my eyes were still wide from Ichigo's statement. "Y-Yeah. Just like the manga, Naruto." Just then, a thought struck. "Say, Ichigo. Quick quiz about the Naruto manga, please?" My question did surprise most of the residents of the room, but no one minded too much. Ichigo nodded in confirmation at my question. "Excellent," I said, and clapped my hands once. "Now, to what point has the manga reached?" I asked, subconsciously leaning forwards in interest to hear the answer of my question.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow, but nonetheless answered. "I don't know. I haven't read the manga for about a month. But the last thing I remember was Shin-" he stopped all of a sudden. Then he looked at me. Like, really looked at me. He was sizing me up. I wondered why he was 'sizing' me up. I mean, really, I didn't swing that way. But frankly speaking, he was about to say something that had to do with 'shin'...

Oh...

I think I know where this was going. "Shinji Takuma..." Ichigo stared at me, as well as Chad. Ishida just burst a vein in anger. He didn't know what was going on, and he was continuously frustrated on not knowing. Orihime was staring at nothing, mouth slightly open. She was thinking of nothing. Again. Yoruichi was still in her cat form, just now standing on the window sill again. She was trying to figure out what Ichigo was thinking, which was usually not that difficult. It usually had something to do with 'protect my friends!' and 'what's my perverted dad going to do now to wake me up?' or something along those lines of thinking. But it was just this time that Yoruichi had problems figuring Ichigo's thoughts out. Renji was looking back and forth between Ichigo and I with a stupid look on his face, while Rukia's brain was hard at work trying to remember a manga named 'Naruto'.

I smirked at having figured out Ichigo's train of thought. I nodded and spread my arms wide. "The one and only."

Ishida's irritation burst like a dam all of a sudden. "Alright, someone explain to me who Takuma-san is supposed to be, and what him possessing chakra has to do with the manga Naruto!"

I chuckled good naturedly and looked at Ishida's rage filled expression. "Relax, Uryuu Ishida. I'll explain to you what's going on," I calmly said, all the while smiling. Sort of like a Retsu Unohana smile, actually. It was a smile that was quite threatening, in any other situation.

Ishida was taken aback. No one had told me of his name. So how come I knew it? Ishida's brain was oiling its clockwork to figure out the hows and the whys.

Yoruichi perked up, "So you know Ishida's name. Do you know the rest of these people's names?"

I nodded at the black furred cat. "Yes, I do. Orihime Inoue. Sado Yasutora, nicknamed 'Chad'. Renji Abarai. Rukia Kuchiki. I know some of all of your backgrounds as well. Don't think I'm not well informed. I am very informed about all things spiritual," I said, while smirking. It was fun to seem all powerful, despite the Gary-Stuish feel that it would give other people. I mean, really. How often could one claim to know almost everything about one's life? Not very often. And I could finally do just that. So I reaped the benefits. Because I fucking could. "Now!" I clapped my hands together once again to interrupt any claims of treachery or cheating that would otherwise rise. "Let me explain to you what I mean by being the 'one and only'," queue air quotes. "I am from a manga. That manga is called Naruto."

One. Wait for it...

Two. Wait for it...

Three. Almost there...

"What?" There we go.

. Rukia tried to make up excuses on how that would be impossible, seeing as she was somewhat attached to me. Renji was just staring at me stupidly, as well as Ishida. Granted, Ishida managed to recompose himself before anyone would see the stupid look on his face and began to cough into his hand and adjust his glasses to hide his embarrassment. Chad was taken aback, judging by his body language. I couldn't tell if his eyes were wide, seeing as he had incredibly thick brown hair. Orihime was staring at me dumbly. Well, I didn't expect the bimbo to do anything else except stare helplessly. Not that I hated her or even disliked her or anything, it was just that she had rather large breasts for her age and had the personality of a brick. Basically, that is. She is, of course, more developed than some other random big boobed woman, but still, the point stood. She was stupid, didn't have much of a personality, and was ditzy to the point of being a clutz. Yoruichi was staring at me with narrowed and calculative eyes. She was undoubtedly trying to figure out what my 'game' was. Thing was, I didn't have a 'game'. I just wanted to see what kind of butterfly effect I could do here. And boy would I be able to make a difference. Unknown to me, Unohana was surprised at my statement, but she promptly left after a silent gesture from the Captain Commander. She quickly vanished in a silent Shunpo.

Ichigo, however, was scowling at me. Not that I minded that much, he scowled at everything and everyone. I knew that much. But I felt it as if he was glaring at me, directly at me. Then he began his questions. "What are you, Shinji Takuma? How are you here? You're supposed to be in a manga, to be a fictional character!" His tone rose as he spoke, beginning quietly and rising to loudness. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded.

I chuckled. Time to play a mind game. "Who am I? Where do I come from? How come I'm here when I'm supposed to be in a manga? Let me tell you," I paused for dramatic effect. It had definitely the desired effect, too. Everyone, including the orange haired young woman, tensed their shoulders. "Ichigo Kurosaki. I will tell you about a certain ability of mine." Without hand seals I cast a technique that slowed time for all those that I wanted to feel the effects of. I could slow time down so much that I could basically stop it, actually. Basically speaking, anyway. I would have to make do with what I could. I could use it for slightly more than twenty minutes at a time without going unconscious from chakra exhaustion. That was a major downside to the technique, and why I couldn't use it too often. It drained far too much chakra. A major downside to it. Another major downside to it was that I couldn't influence anyone while using the time stopping technique. Yet another downside was that when I disabled the technique, I, as well as the ones I chose to still remain unaffected by the stop, would return to their position prior to the technique. Which meant I couldn't harm anyone while using the technique. But it was a major advantage when spying, for example. Or when sharing information, as was the case I was in at that moment. Which meant that I had about twenty minutes to tell Ichigo about a certain something. I would have to tell him about the hows and the whys of my presence in Soul Society without revealing that I was originally from a universe where it was all a manga, a fictional universe.

Ichigo looked around and was about to start to yell at them, asking them why they were all so silent and unmoving, but I took a step forwards. The clack of my black tabi boots echoed through the silence. I decided to explain my technique to Ichigo, so that he wouldn't be too confused. "I have slowed time to a halt, Ichigo. Don't worry, I wouldn't even think of harming your friends. They are your precious people, and in turn, important."

Ichigo stared at me with very wide eyes. "Who are you?" he hesitantly asked. He was slightly scared. I could hear it in his tone of voice.

I smiled. A true, genuine smile, albeit a small one. "I am Shinji Takuma, shinobi of Konoha. I wish to explain to you-"

I was – rudely – interrupted by Ichigo. "Who the hell are you?" he yelled. "And why in the world are Rukia, Renji, Chad, Orihime, Ishida, Yoruichi and the old man all quiet and not moving?" he asked. I internally scoffed at that thought. No, more like demanded.

I began to try and calm him down a little. "Easy there, Ichigo. As I said, I have slowed time down to a complete halt. I cannot uphold this technique forever, though, so listen up, please." Ichigo glared at me, suspicious of me without a doubt. But I had his unrivalled attention, so I continued. "I come from Konoha. Yes, it is from the manga Naruto. But let me tell you this," insert quickly thought out lie, Shinji. "I have invented a technique where I can bring myself and three others into another world. Through extensive use of ninjutsu and seal work, I was to successfully travel to another dimension. Trust me when I say that it took out a lot of chakra out of me. I was almost completely drained, and you probably know of how large my chakra reserves are, right?"

Ichigo nodded. "Three tails, right?"

I nodded too. "That's just about right. Thank you for remembering," I said and bowed politely. I wished to appeal to his good side, which should not be that difficult, actually.

Ichigo blushed from being bowed at by such a powerful individual. Well, good to see that my confidence was still alright and intact. "What-Whatever. Go on with your explanation."

I smiled at him. "Well, you see. I used the technique to transfer Zabuza Momochi, Haku of the Yuki clan, Konan of the Akatsuki and myself."

Ichigo's scowl deepened. "But aren't they all dead?"

Dammit, I oversaw that little detail. Now I had to lie. Again. I sighed dramatically. "I used the Impure World Resurrection to resurrect them." I looked straight into Ichigo's surprised eyes.

Then he got angry, "But doesn't the Impure World Resurrection require a dead body?" Then he got really angry. "That technique is a disgusting use of the dead!" he shouted. He continued to shout. "Why the hell did you use that? I thought you were a respectable shinobi! I thought that you thought that that same technique was a horrible one! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Finished?"

Ichigo widened his eyes and rose his eyebrows. "Finished, Ichigo Kurosaki?" I said again. "I know it's a detestable technique. I know that. However, I used three criminals as sacrifices. I don't think I got any of their names, either. But it doesn't matter. One of them was a rapist," queue cringe and rising anger from the both of us, and a clenched fist from me, "One of them was a murderer of children, and the third was a politician."

Ichigo looked at me with disbelief. "What has that to do with being a criminal?"

I chuckled, "I don't like politicians. Anyway, I used them to resurrect Zabuza, Haku and Konan. If I could resurrect the First, Second, Third and Fourth Hokage, I would. I couldn't, seeing as they were all in the stomach of the Shinigami of the Naruto universe. Thus they were inaccessible through the Impure World Resurrection. Besides," I said, shrugging. "Zabuza, Haku and Konan were all very appreciative of me when I resurrected them. When I told them of my plan to escape that world with them, they readily agreed. They too saw the futility of rescuing the world we were in. We had all lost faith in humanity as it was. We all thought it impossible, even for Naruto, to save the world. If Naruto actually succeeded or not we didn't want to see. Humanity would suffer in the future when Naruto would die. There is no such thing as true peace. That is what we all four believed."

Ichigo scoffed. Then he turned his head, but still looked at me from the corner of his eye. "You lost faith in humanity, something Naruto didn't. You're a coward, then. Cowardice. That's something I hate in people."

I widened my eyes. Well, I was a coward at heart, as I have always said. But that didn't mean that I didn't know what. The widening of my eyes was faked. I wasn't entirely sure that Ichigo knew that I faked it, though to be honest it didn't matter too much. I sighed deeply. I faked emotional tiredness. "Very well. I've always said to myself that I am a coward at heart." Then I looked directly into Ichigo's eyes with fierce determination. "But that doesn't mean I have lost faith in Naruto. I believe in him. If not him, then his legacy." I shrugged. "Or legacies. Depends on how many children he gets with Hinata."

Ichigo, for some reason, blushed heavily at that. That Ichigo blushed had to mean something along the lines of embarrassing for him. If it was embarrassing for him then it had something to do with sex. Or the nude female body. Something I deeply admired. Especially when it came to Konan. I blinked. "What's wrong? Why are you blushing?" I calmly asked.

Ichigo averted his eyes. "N-Nothing. It's nothing, OK?" he stammered. Wow, I didn't expect him to be so flustered.

I sighed and rubbed my forehead. I was getting a slight headache from using the time stopping technique for so long. It was far from a migraine, something that I got when I used the time stopping technique for more than ten minutes, but still, it was a clear indicator that my chakra wouldn't last much longer. "What's wrong, Shinji?" Ichigo asked, noticing my predicament.

"Let's end this," I said, and began to explain the Jinzen. "When you perform the Jinzen you sit like this," and I sat down on the ground, my knees spread wide and my hands on them. "Then you put your sword on your lap. From there you need to concentrate into your very being. You will arrive in your inner world, where you will meet your inner Hollow and your Zanpakuto spirit."

Ichigo's eyes widened. "How do you know about that?"

I sighed. "There's no time to explain, Ichigo. When you perform Jinzen, be sure to be in your Bankai. Then you'll meet your Bankai Zanpakuto spirit. Your Bankai Zanpakuto spirit will fuse with your inner Hollow, and then you will battle each other. I will not tell you how to win. You must do so on your own." I sighed again. The headache just took another spike. It probably thought it fun to mess with me. "There is a technique you will have to learn. It is called 'the Final Getsuga Tensho'. Your Zanpakuto spirit and inner Hollow fused will not want you to learn it. But you must beat it out of him. It doesn't matter how you do it, you must do so. Face the problem head on. Do not escape from mere slashes. You must succeed." I finished the small speech I had done with a sentence. "Am I understood?"

Ichigo nodded, but it was obvious that he was confused as to why he had to follow my orders, and as to how I knew all these things. "Any questions?" I asked.

He said, "Just one. Why is it called the Final Getsuga Tensho?"

"Ah, good question. When you use it, you will lose all your spiritual powers."

Ichigo's eyes understandably widened considerably. "Why would I use it then? It won't make sense! If I use it I won't be able to protect my friends, my family!"

I smirked, "That's the point. You won't use it, you will only learn it."

Ichigo then scowled, again, and nodded. He understood. He had to learn it to become more powerful, but that didn't mean he would have to use it.

My headache just spiked. I groaned and rubbed my temples. "What's wrong, Shinji?" Ichigo asked. He was worried. How quaint. I was getting slightly irritable from the headache. Dammit.

"The more I use this technique the more of a headache I get. Soon it'll develop into a migraine. My chakra is almost up. I have to disable the technique soon." I stood up from my seated position and looked into Ichigo's frowning face. I too frowned, but it was a strained one. I was in slight pain from the headache. "Any further questions, or can I disable the technique?"

"No, you can," he said, and shook his head.

I sighed deeply in gratitude. "Thank you..."

Then time resumed.

Old man Yamamoto must have had noticed that Ichigo's scowl had been more thoughtful. But if he had, he didn't say anything. I mean, really. Why would he say anything about a thoughtful frown? Rukia was still frantically trying to think of a reasonable explanation. Yoruichi was still on the window sill, looking at me with a calculating look. Ishida was adjusting his glasses. Renji was looking at me with a stupid expression. Orihime began to cover her mouth with her hands. The Captain Commander was still hunching over his staff that was actually his Zanpakuto.

Ichigo and I's eyes met. A silent conversation between the two of us began. And ended.

I nodded. "Well, that's all that she wrote." I turned away from the confused crowd. "Shall we, Captain Commander?" I said politely, gesturing out.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I know that the time stopping technique was sudden and whatnot, but I sure hope that you won't think that it is overpowered. I tried to make as severe consequences about it as possible. With luck, I won't have to write it again. It is impossible for Shinji Takuma to hurt anyone with the technique, so the only good thing about it is information spreading. Besides, the technique's a hog when it comes to chakra, as you have seen, and it gives Shinji Takuma a severe headache the more he uses it.  
>Anyway, I hope you enjoyed. This chapter is dedicated to you, the reader. Without you, I wouldn't be here right now. I really, really am a lucky guy, yeah? Ain't I? :D<p> 


	51. Back And Forth

**Author's note:** The poll is still going.

* * *

><p>Once we were outside the Fourth Division's Barracks the Captain Commander stopped me by putting his hand on my shoulder. I stopped, of course, and turned my head to the old Captain Commander. "Yes?" I asked.<p>

"What did you do to Ichigo Kurosaki?" he said. He had made sure we were well out of hearing range of other Shinigami and otherwise. I rose an eyebrow in question. I didn't expect him to be able to detect any changes. But granted, Ichigo got rather thoughtful all of a sudden. And the Captain Commander was unnaturally perceptive. "I noticed that he became pensive all of a sudden. What brought that change?"

I nodded. I believed that a quick and white lie was in order. "With my chakra I am able to traverse into another person's mind. It's nifty, useful, in the sense that it manages to slow time drastically while explaining things-"

I was interrupted by the old man. "You're lying. Tell me the truth, or else."

I sighed heavily. Seemed like I couldn't lie to the bearded man. Oh well, explaining my time stopping technique wouldn't be too detrimental to my plans. Not that I was going to do an Aizen and betray anyone. And besides, it might actually be beneficial if I did tell him about the technique. "I have recently mastered a technique that stops time for a short period of time." I saw the Captain Commander tense up and about to say something, but before he could do that I held up a hand to stop him. "I will explain to you the downsides first. One of them is that I get a headache. The longer I use it the more severe it gets. Another is that it is a chakra hog, no matter how little chakra I put into the technique. Yet another is that it is only any good when it comes to information sharing, since when once I disable the technique I, as well as everyone I want to not be stopped will resume their position that they were in previous to the start of the technique. Hence why Ichigo and I didn't move at all. I have also discovered that I cannot hurt anyone when I use the technique." I hummed slightly. I was debating whether or not to tell him that I didn't want to use it ever again, seeing as I preferred to be at full chakra capacity as often as possible. It was a short inner debate. "I will tell you this, though. I would prefer never using it ever again. I would like to have as much chakra at my disposal as possible at all times. Just in case, you understand, yes?"

The Captain Commander sighed. He was probably tired of all the things that went against him and his military. I didn't blame him, to be honest. It was tiring to fight an uphill battle all the time. Especially now that Aizen was on the loose. Then he nodded. "Very well. I will not force you to use the technique anymore," he said, exhausted. Or at least he sounded so. I didn't know, and to be honest, I believed that he would be able to force himself through any trouble that would otherwise rise.

I bowed. "Thank you, Captain Commander."

"Wait here. I will be back," he said. He turned around and entered the Fourth Division's barracks.

I leaned against the wall beside the entrance to the barracks. I wondered why the Captain Commander went in again. It could be that he had something to report, or tell in layman's terms, to Unohana. But it could also be that he had to go Ichigo and his friends and tell them about some of my powers. Hopefully he wouldn't tell them about the fact that I was a future teller, should it come to the Captain Commander actually going to those friend-obsessed brats. Not that I didn't like having friends, neither the fact that I wouldn't want to protect those friends with my life, but Ichigo and his friends took it to the next level, taking their friends' lives second to none. Not even their own. They would take wounds that would kill other people for their friends. They had an absolute disregard for their own health and safety. All for the well being of their friends.

That thought made me jealous of them.

I was a coward at heart, as I had said before. I hadn't protected my friends. Hell, I was close to killing two friends, Kazue and Akahime, had Kazue not beat some sense into me and make me realize that I was in a blood frenzy. I was eternally grateful of him. Had he not done what he did I would definitely not have been the same person. I would basically be a blood thirsty maniac with a penchant for violence. Thank goodness that I had a friend in Kazue and Akahime.

Unknowingly I had spent those minutes thinking rubbing my arm. Without my knowledge a tear had slid past both my eyelids that were closed in thought. I didn't see, nor hear, multiple sets of footsteps approaching at a walking pace until it was too late. Well, not a lethal mistake, but it was a mistake that I would hopefully not do again. "Are you crying, Takuma-san?" I heard someone, definitely female, say. I immediately identified the voice as Orihime.

I snapped open my eyes. Dammit, I was caught, and I was crying of all things! I slid a hand on my cheek to check for any liquid, and sure enough, my hand was glimmering slightly from the tears that I had wiped away. I frowned deeply at my hand, and sighed. "I was thinking of the past," I decided to tell them. I would get some kind of sympathy from them if I told them some truth. I hoped that I would then be in their good books, that they would then trust me. I sighed again, only this one sounded more like one of irritation or frustration than anything else. "I'll tell you the truth. I have the Rinnegan, if you didn't already know. A Rinnegan user is able to use the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities. However, there is a severe consequence to it."

Before I could continue – I was not looking at the crowd that had gathered, instead opting to avert my gaze to the floor in front of my feet – Ichigo spoke up. "It gives you a lust for blood, right?" he asked. No, it was more of a statement than a question. There were gasps, and other sounds of surprise, from whom I presumed were Ichigo's friends. Especially Orihime. I could hear her slap her hands on her mouth in pitying shock. I didn't mind pity, unlike many others. I didn't care if people pitied me, as long as they didn't hate or dislike me.

I sighed, this time heavily and sadly, and replied to Ichigo's statement, nodding. "Yes. The blood lust is the most severe when I use the Susanoo. Something I know I will have to use in the future. I just know it, somehow." This time I looked at the crowd. Sure enough, there was Ishida, Rukia, Renji, Orihime, Ichigo, Captain Commander Yamamoto, a black cat that was obviously Yoruichi on Ichigo's shoulder, and surprisingly enough Captain of the Fourth Division Retsu Unohana. She had probably healed Ichigo up to full health, or as much was required for him to walk, seeing as Ichigo was out of bed. Not to forget Chad, either. He was just himself, though. Keeping to himself and staying calm and collected. I wondered briefly why he did that, but I believed that he had his reasons. He was violent in his childhood, using his strength to bully children. His grandfather corrected that, thank god.

I closed my eyes and sighed again. I opened them again and softened my expression when I looked at Rukia and Renji. "Rukia. Renji. I'm sorry I didn't tell you this sooner. But there are still loads of things you don't know about me. A lot that you won't ever know, even. I'm sorry," and then I proceeded to plant my forehead on the ground in apology. It was the most humblest of bows. I knew it would make them both blush in embarrassment, but still. I had to beg for their forgiveness if the future was to become what it would have to become.

I added chakra to my ears when I heard Rukia mumbling something under her breath. "I-It's fine. Really..." she stammered out, embarrassed over my action. Renji just nodded, blushing heavily. Or I thought that he did, at least. When I looked up, I confirmed it. Renji and Rukia were blushing heavily.

I sighed in relief. This was a good twist of fate. If they didn't like me, or outright hated me, they wouldn't trust Ichigo alone with me and the Captain Commander. Something that was necessary for Ichigo's advancement in the reiryoku and reiatsu department. "Thank goodness. Thank you," I bowed again when I stood up and brushed off my kimono. "For forgiving me."

I had my head down and eyes closed, so I didn't see the incoming fist that rapidly approached my head. I felt a sudden pain going through my head, and I immediately clutched it in fear of it snapping in half. I groaned in pain. "What the hell?" I half yelled. I was surprised by the fist. That much was obvious. I looked up, and sure enough, there was Rukia with a raised fist, a vein bulging on her forehead and she was sporting a heavy blush.

"I-Idiot!" she yelled, no one but me noticing that she stammered. "Of course I'd forgive you! Don't you remember when-" She curiously stopped talking, and her dangerously bulging vein receded. Her blush, however, reddened. She looked down on the ground and tapped it with her foot. She was obviously embarrassed with something, and she wasn't going to say whatever it was that was embarrassing her. Oh well. It wasn't exactly the end of the world if she wouldn't say what it was that was bothering her.

Rukia whispered something under her breath, and I was the only one who heard it, since I had not stopped channelling chakra through my ears. "When you comforted me when I had a nightmare about you, Zabuza, Haku and Renji being killed. Don't you remember that?" she asked, looking up into my startled, but otherwise expecting, eyes. Sure enough, there were tears forming in her eyes.

I smiled softly and stood up to my full height. I remembered comforting Rukia when she had had a nightmare. She had woken up, shivering. She hadn't screamed in pure terror, just shivering like mad, her eyes bolting from left to right, front and center, back and forth, as if she were expecting someone to enter the sleeping room with the intent to kill for the hell of it. Luckily it had been my turn to guard, and it was a quiet night, so I had entered the sleeping room to check on them the moment Rukia had woken up. Once I opened the door – slowly, as to not disturb the sleepers – her eyes had immediately been affixed to the door in pure and absolute fear of her life. The door hadn't made a sound when I opened it, and I had slowly entered, looking undauntedly at the sleeping forms of Zabuza, Renji and Haku. Then I had noticed Rukia. She was staring with wide eyes at me, in something I immediately identified as fear. I had hastily got to her side, and her eyes were staring at me as if they had been glued to me. I had kneeled at her side and began to whisper comforting words into her. I had hugged her tightly, a hug she had quickly returned. She had quietly sobbed into my shoulder, taking care to not make too much sound in fear for Zabuza, Haku and Renji for waking up. Then I had proceeded to whisper into her ear that no one was going to harm her, no one would ever harm her ever again while I was anywhere near her. I had held my promise. I wasn't even in the same sub-universe as her when she was under attack or otherwise incapacitated by the Hollow that attacked Ichigo's family.

Speaking of Rukia and Ichigo in the same context...

"Say, Rukia," my voice snapped her out of her blushing stupor.

"What?" she said in a low voice. It wasn't loud enough to carry on to the waiting crowd, but loud enough that I would hear it without having to channel chakra through my ears.

"I must say," I said loudly enough for Ichigo and his friends to hear. I put a hand on her shoulder and grinned a stupid, and toothy, grin. "You sure know how to pick 'em!"

Silence followed my sentence. It seemed that Yoruichi was catching on, though, because suddenly she began to hide her laughter.

Rukia just tilted her head and said, "Huh?", curiosity marring her voice.

My smile turned smug, hardly hiding any laughter that I had inside me. Oh the fun. I pointed in Ichigo's general direction and said, "Him. You sure know how to pick them."

That got the result I wanted. All of a sudden Rukia's entire body flushed with over fifty red colours, curiously enough with red colours I hadn't seen before in my life. I quickly glanced at a heavily blushing Ichigo, and sure enough, there he was being laughed at by Renji, smirked smugly at by Ishida, being looked curiously at by Orihime – clueless as she was –, being stared at by Chad, being incredulously looked at by Yoruichi – who was also maintaining laughing eyes –, and being ignored by the Captain Commander, and smiled at by Captain Unohana.

My grin widened as I returned my gaze to a flustered Rukia. "After all, he invades Soul Society, which is a whole other plane of existence by the way, learns Bankai, defeats two of the best Captains Gotei thirteen has to offer, as well as two of the higher ranked Shinigami who curiously enough share an attribute that I will not disclose," I said that achievement low enough for only Rukia to hear, mumbling it under my breath, "Defeats three more Lieutenants, defeats an entire Division's military, kidnaps a Division's healer, and not specifically in that order, and it's all for you!" I finished loudly, splaying my arms about to emphasize the point.

Yes, life was fun when I wanted it to be. Let it be known that I was a fan of a romantic relationship between Ichigo and Rukia!

Rukia was blushing vividly, like mad even, and stammered incoherently. Ichigo was blushing heavily as well as yelling at Renji to stop laughing like a loon, something Renji was not letting up any time soon. Ishida was coughing into his hand, all the while smirking a superior smirk. Yoruichi had finally let go of her restraints and began laughing in a deep voice, rolling on the floor laughing, cat tail swinging from side to side with fervour. Orihime had finally understood the implications I had layered on thickly, blushing. Sadly, though, she was also generating small tears in her eyes, something I believed to be the only one to notice before she wiped them away and resumed a dumb look. Well, she did have a crush on Ichigo. Something she would hopefully get over before it was too late. Before she would go crazy or something. A chances of _that_ happening were as low as the shortest person in the world was to the tallest person in the world. The chances were slim, to say the least. Chad was just himself. Calm, and not saying a word. Though he did cough into his hand after hearing all the things that Ichigo did for Rukia.

Rukia began to go silent, but her head was still tilted down and and I was sure that she was still blushing madly. I hoped that she would see it in her to love Ichigo. I was a sap for romance that was just meant to be. Besides, purple, the colour of her hair – or really dark purple, depends on how you look at it, really – and orange, the colour of Ichigo's hair, really fit in a sense. If Ichigo and Orihime got together there'd be too much orange. Sure, Naruto would love it, but I _so_ wouldn't like it. Orange was really not my colour. White was more like it, as well as silver. But purple I didn't have much against, especially not when it was set up against orange. Orange I didn't really like when it stood alone, but it was fine when used in conjunction to other colours. Like purple.

I sighed at the thought. It was so romantic. I was an absolute sap for romance, as previously stated. Ichigo's relationship with Rukia, especially seeing as it would only deepen the longer they were together as friends.

Besides, just because Kubo Tite, the creator of Bleach, didn't want his story to become a romance, didn't mean that I didn't. And I had the power to change things. I had the power to back up my claims. I had the power to change the storyline of Bleach.

So why the hell not go crazy?

* * *

><p>"Konan-chan! I'm back home- Oh, hi there, Haku," I said cheerfully, smiling widely. I was in a very good mood, seeing as I just planted the seed of romantic doubt into Rukia's and Ichigo's heads. And thinking of all the teasing that Ichigo's friends would do would definitely help the relationship bloom into romance. Somehow. I would definitely be there to guide them together. Well, so I hoped, anyway. It wouldn't matter too much in the end, I believed.<p>

Haku noticed my very happy mood, and smiled widely at me. "Hello, Takuma-san. May I know why you're so happy this fine day?" he asked airily.

I grinned a toothy grin. "Well, it's because my favourite pairing except for Naruto with Hinata is now a possibility!" I half yelled. I was almost giddy with anticipation on how the world would react to Ichigo and Rukia going together.

Haku's smile turned incredibly smug. "Oh? And how about your 'pairing' with Konan-san? I hear that you two are quite rowdy. Especially when it comes to activities that are supposed to be kept private."

…

I... didn't know we were that loud when we, uh... made love. Yeah. Were we? Dammit, now I was blushing like a school girl! What was wrong with me? I didn't know we were that loud! "We-We aren't that loud!" I voiced my thoughts.

Haku giggled into his hand. "I just want to say that I approve of your relationship. Whatever you do in private is totally up to you," he giggled out. Dammit all! Why did Haku have to be more emotionally sadistic than Zabuza? Don't answer that, it's a rhetorical question.

Deciding to rectify Haku's smug attitude, I said, albeit stammering at the same time, "We-Well, one can hear you and Zabuza going at it through the walls, you know. You are quite rowdy in bed too."

One of Haku's eyebrows rose, but he still had a smug smirk on his effeminate face. "Really? That's the best comeback you have, Takuma-san? I would have jabbed at my feminine appearance and Zabuza's parental love for me." He shrugged. "But alas, sucking his-"

"No! I don't want to hear it!" I yelled out, slapping my hands on my ears and humming loudly. I turned around as well as closing my eyes.

I didn't hear Haku giggle and say, "His lollipops that he buys in a store by the Eleventh Division is quite an exquisite experience." He giggled again at my immature demeanour.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I know the ending is a bit... meh. And lately my endings have been... meh. But please, bear with me here. But still, I thank you for faithfully reading thus far.  
>By the way, will someone please vote in the poll? There are only eighteen voters out of god knows how many people who otherwise read this story. Please vote in it!<br>Anyway, I appreciate you reading this, and I hope you will review. By the way, in a review, please state what is wrong with my chapters, what is wrong with my story, what is generally wrong. I know that grammatically and spelling wise I am at the very least decent. But story wise, I need criticism, otherwise I won't be able to improve and not make the same mistakes in the future!


	52. Spars

**Author's note:** The poll is still going!

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><p>Despite the embarrassing episode of the argument of sexualities between Haku and I, I still felt as if I could protect him with my very life. I was, after all, a person who could hold a grudge, but would see arguments between friends as something petty, something not worth mentioning again. Besides that, it had been a day since I had met Ichigo and co-<p>

"You're not focusing, Takuma!" I heard someone yell, before I heard the distinct sound of metal cutting through air. And it wasn't just any metal, no. The sword was large, larger than Ichigo's Shikai meat cleaver.

I ducked below the giant sword that would have otherwise decapitated me. Dammit, he was right. I wasn't focusing. I lashed out with my right foot and felt it connect with something incredibly hard. More specifically, I knew my black tabi boots I had gotten connected to Zabuza's abdominal muscles. We both promised that for this spar, it would be taijutsu only. With no chakra to be used. I hadn't used my chakra weights since I came to Soul Society, and it showed. I was slightly faster than Zabuza. But when it came to brute strength, Zabuza was far more superior than I was. I mean, he could lift what looked like a brutally oversized meat cleaver, for christ's sake!

I jumped backwards a fair distance – eight feet – and regrouped my senses. As promised for the spar, I neglected the use of chakra, despite my instincts practically screaming at me to use lightning natured chakra to enhance the speed of my brain processes, earth natured chakra to enhance the brute strength, water natured chakra to enhance the flexibility of my body structure, wind natured chakra to enhance my overall speed, and fire natured chakra to pack even more of an area of effect punch than the earth natured chakra did. The earth natured chakra-

"You're still not focusing, Takuma!" Zabuza yelled out. He was angry, because if I had time to think of things other than the fight, then that meant that I was getting better than him. He would _not_ have that.

"Right, right! Sorry!" I apologized. But then I focused on the action. Zabuza jumped up high into the air without the use of chakra – strong leg muscles, eh? – and prepared to slash at me with his Executioner's Blade. I rolled to the left, something Zabuza predicted and kicked me in my ribs. I rolled heavily to the left, pain coursing through my nervous system. It wasn't the worst pain I had felt, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt as hell. I hastily stood up, just as Zabuza came at me with his giant cleaver. As the sword rapidly approached my body I quickly put a hand on the sword and jumped over it.

My action surprised Zabuza slightly, but he lashed out with his free hand – he used only one hand to swing that freaking ton of a sword? – and knocked me on the side of my head, making me slightly dizzy and sending me careening of to the edge of the tree line opposite our previous position. His punch was still strong as hell, after eighty years. Then again, muscles did not go through atrophy while we had been in Soul Society-

Dammit! I wasn't focusing! I looked up in time to see a foot stopping right in front of my nose. "You lost, Takuma. You should focus more," Zabuza gruffly said.

I sighed deeply. It was always like that in our spars. I would lose focus and Zabuza would win the battle by exploiting my lack of focus. It was getting annoying. I saw that Zabuza had offered his hand for me to take as he hoisted his Executioner's Blade onto the shoulder strap he had. I took the offered hand and he lifted me up effortlessly. As said, he was monstrously strong, almost deceptively so. It was downright scary, now that I think about it.

* * *

><p>Zabuza and I arrived back home, and I saw Konan waiting for me on the couch with her usual expression on her pretty face. I smiled softly. She was a far better girlfriend than Anko or Akahime. Anko and Akahime would often hit me if I was lazy. Konan would just take my arm and drag me instead. That, or she would threaten me with blue balls or paper cuts. I always immediately complied after those threats. She made them seem very real.<p>

I sighed at that thought. The things I do for the women I love.

Konan stood up from her seat on the couch and walked towards me, slowly, while swinging her hips. Oh, she was going to get it for teasing me like that. Really going to get it. And besides, she wouldn't really complain, except giving out a slight token resistance. She was, after all, quite the submissive-

No! Dirty thoughts! Dirty thoughts! Begone!

_Anyway_, when Konan got up to me she pressed herself against me and began to kiss me fiercely. Apparently Konan liked it when people were looking at us while kissing. Or doing more... intimate activities. Zabuza, however, wasn't exactly voyeuristic, so he grunted and immediately began to walk towards the stairs.

I heard Haku being in the kitchen, what with the clattering of kitchenware.

I broke off the heavy kiss and leaned my head back so that I could look into Konan's beautiful, and somewhat hazy with lust, grey eyes. I smirked at her. "Not that I'm complaining or anything, but should we not keep this in the bedroom? Or when we're alone?" Then I kissed her lightly on the lips again and began to wrap my hands tightly around her waist. "Unless," I growled suggestively, at a tone I knew would make Konan's libido rocket to the skies. "You're an exhibitionist."

As predicted by me, Konan blushed heavily. She put her hands on my chest and made a token resistance to me, pushing me without wanting me to go away. She liked feeling helpless when it was taken to sexual contexts. I was more than pleased to know that. "Shin-Shinji-kun..." she stammered, embarrassed by the notion of being an exhibitionist. Oh, did I mention she also liked being erotically humiliated? "D-Don't..."

"Don't what, my love?" I said forcefully, growling, smiling. I once again kissed her and began to slowly inch one of my hands downwards towards her butt while the other went directly to her hair and grabbed a fistful of it, without actually causing her any pain. Did I also mention that I could be rather forceful when I wanted to be in bed? Yeah, that too.

She averted her eyes to her right, blushing up a storm. Damn was she cute when she blushed like that. She was truly a woman I loved. "Don't... please, don't tease me like this."

I smirked and licked her lips slowly and sensually. "That's what you get for dressing so provocatively, my love," I said huskily, eyeing her blue robes that showed both a generous amount of cleavage and a large amount of the sides of her breasts. She also wore very tight black pants, showcasing the world her long and lean legs. I had made her remove all of her piercings, both because I didn't like them, and because she was even more beautiful without them. Sure, she had complained, but she had complied in the end, something I was eternally thankful for. "Now if you don't go to our bedroom and stay naked under the covers until I arrive, I will be very angry with you. You deserve punishment for being a tease to me." Of course I wouldn't be angry with her, neither was I angry with her. This was just one of our many sexual games we did every so often. I really liked taking control, and Konan really liked losing it. It was a win-win situation, so why not go nuts? Of course, after each intense sex session we would cuddle like there was no tomorrow, to show that, yes, we still loved each other. We were still there for each other. And being a master to a hot and sexy submissive 'slave', well... yeah. It was definitely pleasant, since she would almost literally do everything I wanted her to do.

I had something to ask Haku anyway, and letting Konan wonder what her punishment would be was fun. It made her anxious, and turned her on like you wouldn't believe. I licked Konan's earlobe, knowing that she had a sensitive spot there. She moaned and I was sure she would almost disregard her rule of not coming unless I told her to. "Almost coming from me licking your ear and palming your ass. You are quite a slut, aren't you?" I called her names only when I knew it would make her hot and bothered, not when I knew she would kick my ass for calling her something like a slattern. Because that is quite rude, name calling. Especially when used outside sexual activities.

She moaned lustfully and dug her head into my neck, moaning again, need marring her sexy voice. I let go of her hair as she did this and stopped massaging her butt. I took a step back. And as I did so Konan moaned with disappointment. She wanted contact, and depriving her of it would let her know that I was in control, not her. Well, not when it came to the bedroom, at least. "Now," I ordered, "Go. And remember what I told you," I said sternly. I faked the stern tone, of course. I wouldn't for the life of me want Konan to be hurt. Not emotionally, not physically, nothing. I would protect her with my life. I hoped that my cowardice wouldn't come to play, though. Because that would definitely suck.

Konan moaned, blushing. She walked towards the stairs, swinging her delectable rear end back and forth. A tease, she was. I smiled lovingly at her retreating back. She truly trusted me with her life, despite the fact that we had only known each other for less than a week. But then again, sometimes relationships just advanced quicker than normal. This was one of those times that relationships developed and matured quicker than what one would sometimes read about in romance novels. Quick and sweet. That was essentially what defined the beginning of my loving relationship with Konan.

I sighed. Oh well. Even if our relationship had developed too quickly, who cared? Not that many, I tell you. We loved each other just as much as a newly wed couple. Yeah, we loved each other that much. Or at least I presumed we did. But I wanted to stay positive. Nay, I needed to stay positive, have a positive outlook on life. If I didn't I would have gone crazy! I did _not_ want to go crazy, especially not now that I had someone to protect with my life, namely Konan.

That's an idea.

But I had to go ask Haku something important. Well, no, it wasn't life important, but I deemed it to be important enough that I would stall having a heated sex session with my beloved Konan.

…

Or did I?

Oh screw it, I thought, and went straight to the stairs, albeit slowly, as to make Konan wait a little longer. Haku could wait.

* * *

><p>A furious sex session later I left the bedroom, fully dressed and not needing to be looked over by a mother hen to see if I had just done something indecent.<p>

As for Konan... well, to be fair, I had definitely made love to her just the way she liked. So it was no wonder that she got a pleasure overload and fell unconscious. Of course I was initially extremely worried, but as I gathered my thoughts and pressed two of my fingers on her jugular vein, I found it beating. Well, I thought it was called a jugular vein. If it wasn't, oh well. Never mind. I didn't care. I just had extreme sex with a previously thought fictional character, a character that just so happened to be very attractive, both in reality and in drawing. How many people could claim that? Not very many, I tell you.

All things sex related aside, I now had to go ask Haku what I wanted to ask him about.

I walked down the stairs and went into the kitchen. I had sensed that Haku was still in the kitchen with my limited chakra sensing ability. It wasn't exactly the best, but neither was it anything to browbeat at. I could basically sense any chakra signature within half a mile very well and identify to whom the chakra signature belonged to clearly. And when I say basically, I mean that there could be obstructions that obscure my sensing ability. As previously said, it wasn't the best, but neither was it the worst. So I was happy, to say the least.

Anyway, looking past that little point there, I went into the kitchen after shaking my head a little to clear my thoughts. The question I had to ask Haku about was quite of a personal nature, therefore I had to be careful. I mean, the question itself wasn't really anything to glare and frown at, nothing to hate at. I was curious. And my curiosity could only be sated by either spying on Haku religiously or asking him directly. I wasn't going to intimidate him when asking him, so instead I would just go and do something entirely different from intimidation. Yes, I would definitely be able to get the answer I wanted. I approached Haku, and when Haku turned his head to briefly glance at me he nodded to acknowledge my presence. Good. That was something I wanted. Now, depending on Haku's answer, I wasn't exactly going to judge him, should he be what I presumed him to be. Personal questions had a tendency to be quite provoking. Having an angry Haku was going to be very detrimental to my health. I wouldn't be fighting back against him, seeing as he was one of my 'precious people', as Naruto put it. And because I didn't want to accidentally use any of my Mangekyo Sharingan abilities. Just in case, a fail safe, if you will.

I leaned against the counter opposite the counter Haku occupied. He was currently cutting onions. I didn't know how he was able to resist getting tears into his eyes – perhaps he was channelling chakra to his eyes to create a defensive layer against the onions' fumes – but it didn't matter. My question mattered. I was curious beyond measure. The question had been hanging around my head in the entire time since I got to know that Haku was actually a full blooded male. In fact, I didn't just have _one_ question; I had several. Several questions that could either be answered by either stalking Haku or Zabuza constantly, listening in on their conversations, everything, or asking. And I believed – correctly – that asking would be the better option.

"Haku," I was trying to hide my nervousness behind a mask of polite indifference. I succeeded masking my emotions with the polite indifference. Thank goodness and god for that. Because if Haku knew about my nervousness he wouldn't let me live it down. He's sadistic like that.

"Hmm?" he hummed questioningly. His tone was incredibly feminine, now that I think about it. It sounded almost, if not, exactly like that of a woman who had just been through the potentially horribly scarring experience known to the general public as puberty.

I sighed. This was going to be nerve wrecking. A nerve wrecking experience indeed. Hopefully I would come out physically fine. I knew that mentally I'd be fine no matter what the answer would be, but I did hope that me getting physically scarred would be set as a minimum. Konan had recently revealed that she didn't like scars on men. Well, there were several things that she had revealed that she didn't like in men – rowdiness, hot headedness, a bubbly personality, pervertedness, among many, many other things – but I was lucky enough to have a quality that none of the other members in the Akatsuki had.

Calmness without any sort of complex to boot.

Pain, or Nagato, had a god complex. Thus meaning that Konan would only like him as a friend. Or as a god, and worship the ground he figuratively walked on. Nagato himself was a cripple, after all, so he couldn't really walk at all.

Anyway, back to reality, Shinji Takuma. I shook my head, once again to clear my thoughts. "Well," I said, looking at anything other than Haku's pink clad form. "I've wanted to ask you something for a long time."

I didn't know that Haku at the moment had raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You may ask any question you see fit to be asked. In other words," Haku said, laying down the very sharp knife and turning around, too leaning against the counter. He jerked with his head, "Just ask."

I nodded. "Well, I wanted to know if you love Zabuza."

Haku rose an eyebrow. "I love him, yes- Oh!" Haku suddenly realized what I meant. "You mean as in not as a parent. You mean like, really, love him, right?" and I swore that Haku was blushing slightly.

Mentally, though, I grinned maliciously. Revenge is a bitch, Haku. Though I kept my outward appearance of polite indifference. You see, this was my plan. I wanted to embarrass Haku for what he had done to me. Revenge is truly a bitch.

I nodded. "In a homosexual way, yes." I quickly put up a hand to stop Haku from saying anything that would turn the tides in his favour. "Not that I have anything against you being-"

"Shinobi Shinji Takuma, the Captain Commander has requested your presence," a nondescript Shinigami with the white haori standard for all First Division military Shinigami said.

I sighed. "Well, there's no reason to keep the Captain Commander waiting."

Inside my mind I was cursing up a storm. Now I couldn't embarrass Haku the way I wanted to as sweet, sweet revenge. Now I had to wait for the opportunity to humiliate him. Fuck it all. Never mind. It wasn't the end of the world.

But it sure as hell was the end of my pride, though.

* * *

><p>"Shinji Takuma, you have arrived," the old voice of the Captain Commander addressed me once I finally arrived with my Shinigami escort. I stood before him on the Sokyoku hill. The Captain Commander was accompanied by the invaders of Soul Society, which meant Ichigo and his friends, along with Yoruichi, as well as the Captains and Lieutenants of Gotei thirteen. I folded my arms across my chest, internally pouting at being interrupted in my just revenge against Haku. I didn't dare pout in front of the Captains, Lieutenants and Ichigo and his friends. I noticed that Ikkaku Madarame, Yumichika Ayasegawa, Hanataro Yamada and Rukia Kuchiki were there as well. But still, pouting in front of that many people. It'd put me in a childish light. I didn't want that. I wanted to be respected for my power, for my knowledge, for myself. In the world of where I was before I died and was sent to the Naruto world I was a pathetic individual. I hadn't living the fullest of my life. I did nothing to save people from themselves and their misery. Now I had the power to do so. And I intended to do so. "I have requested that you all to be here for one single reason. The Captains, Lieutenants and the previous invaders, as well as Rukia Kuchiki, Ikkaku Madarame, Yumichika Ayasegawa and Hanataro Yamada, will observe and give their own point of view of the spar between myself and the shinobi Shinji Takuma."<p>

...

Well, that was a _pleasant_ surprise.

Here's hoping he won't go Bankai on my ass.

I'm fucked.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> My main keyboard just got its space bar busted, so I am using my secondary keyboard. Trust me, changing from a gamer keyboard to a standard QWERTY keyboard is very... uncomfortable. It's something that one will have to get used to, that's for sure.

Also, I'll be honest. When I was writing about those sexual things, I was feeling quite embarrassed... I hope you can forgive me. But hey, isn't this an M-rated story? xD

Anyway, the poll is still going, and so far, 21 voters have voted. I would like more voters please. Please? Please. :)


	53. Simple Spar, Right?

**Author's note:** Thank you all so much for voting! I've decided; while the poll is blind to _you_, the reader, I am able to see who won. I am now closing the poll. Again, thank you so much for voting! But it is clear who won. And you will have to wait and see which universe it was that won.

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><p>Alright, then," I said cockily. While I was sure that I would lose the fight I would definitely give the old man a run for his money. I had, after all, the Rinnegan, Tailed Beast level chakra and knowledge of over a hundred different techniques, all of which could kill, or have some kind of effect that would help me defeat my opponent. I was sure that the observers were hesitant to call me a worthy opponent of the Captain Commander, but I would show them. I would show them that I was going to kick ass and chew bubble gum. And I was all out of bubble gum.<p>

Yamamoto approached me, and when he got within eighty feet of me the air seemed to ripple slightly. It was almost as if there was some kind of barrier, actually. "I have ordered the Kido corps to set up the strongest reiatsu suppressing barrier they have over the entire Sokyoku hill," we were at the only bridge that connected the rest of Seireitei. "The barrier is strong enough to suppress even my Bankai at full capacity," he said.

I rose my eyebrows in appreciative surprise. Wow, that's a very strong barrier. But then again, it _is_ the secretive Kido corps that we're talking about here. They're supposed to be experts in all things Kido. So it was no wonder that they should be able to suppress even Yamamoto's Bankai.

Yamamoto turned around and put a hand on the rippling air. I saw that Ichigo especially was confused, and he turned and asked what was happening. Apparently the barrier was also sound proof, or at least somewhat, because I heard nothing, not even when I began to channel chakra through my ears. The only thing I heard was the Captain Commander's slight and calm breathing and my own. I cut off the flow of chakra to my ears. The barrier, after a while of having the Captain Commander's hand on it, got slightly more opaque, slightly less transparent. It took an off white yellow colour. But the large audience was still able to see through with ease.

Then the Captain Commander turned around after nodding to himself. His usually squinting eyes were open, showing only me that he had red eyes. But I believed that he wasn't exactly keeping his eye colour a state secret anyway, so never mind. "Are you ready, Takuma?" the man's old voice cut through the silence like that of a knife. Or a sword, in some cases.

I took a taijutsu stance, the one I had been taught by Zabuza, and was ready to perform any techniques that should be needed to defeat, or at least stall, the old man's attempts at winning a battle against me.

This was going to be a battle of the ages, and I was going to be one of the contestants.

"I'm ready, Captain Commander Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. The question should rather be, are _you_ ready?" I smirked. I was confident on the outside. I was confident that I could give the over two thousand year old Captain Commander a run for his money.

On the inside I was sweating bullets of fear. I mean, this was the freaking Captain Commander of Gotei thirteen! He could wipe the floor with Aizen if he so desired. Alright, maybe not wipe the floor with Aizen, but Aizen himself had, or will, acknowledge the Captain Commander as a man to be feared and respected gravely.

The Captain Commander held up a hand. He then proceeded to take off the top of his Shinigami uniform, discarding his haori completely. It was probably going to be soaked, electrified, dirtied, cut up and burned – especially burned –, so why not just take it off? It seemed that the old man thought the same and had discarded it. "Let us start, Takuma," he said gruffly, his voice grave and otherwise daring me to oppose him.

I removed my smirk immediately and nodded. "Yes, let's," I answered, and resumed my ninjutsu and taijutsu focused stance.

I wondered at that moment if genjutsu would work on him. But to be fair, I wouldn't use genjutsu unless it would save me the battle or save me an arm or something.

"Reduce all creation to ash, Ryuujin Jakka!" he growled. The fire that then erupted from his sword that was hidden in his staff completely evaporated the wood that usually covered his sword. The ensuing fire was so large, so incredibly huge that licked the top of the strongest barrier of the Kido corps.

However, I felt no heat from it. I felt nothing. I had a thought all of a sudden. It was an impossible thought, but hey, you never get anywhere without trying. I brought up a hand and reached out with a hand towards the raging fire that was probably supposed to intimidate me. It did work to intimidate me, however. The fire burned with such ferocity that I thought that the Captain Commander had already gone Bankai without giving me the courtesy of telling me.

I wanted to absorb the fire, to use the Preta Path's ability to absorb and devour chakra. It, as already stated, was an impossibility. I mean, the Preta Path was supposed to absorb chakra, not reiatsu or reiryoku.

It didn't work.

All I got was a burnt sleeve. I didn't feel the effects of the fire on my flesh, but looking at my hand, I saw that it was steaming slightly. Well, the fire had to burn something, so why not the liquid that I was sweating tonnes of? I was scared by the old man. No, not scared. Terrified was more like it. I didn't know what had come over me. I wanted to give him a run for his money, and I was getting that wish. Perhaps... perhaps I needed to neutralize it with my killing intent.

It was an idea that as soon as it crossed my mind I did it. I let loose the killing intent, removing every mental limiter and blocker I had and throwing everything I had towards Yamamoto's general direction.

As if in a great sweep of a tornado, the fire around me within a radius of about thirty feet was swept into the air and dissipated into nothingness, as if the thing that supplied oxygen to the fire was swept away. As if it had the oxygen and the fire had been blown away by an invisible force.

Thank god for killing intent. I looked back at the old man Captain Commander, but he wasn't surprised for some reason. He was squinting his eyes again, but I could tell he was looking at me with calculating eyes. He was measuring my ability, or what he could measure without me using any techniques. And I guessed that he thought that he didn't like what I was showing. I hadn't stepped away from my taijutsu stance, so I was in good hands, as long as I took myself calmly forward without as much as a wince of fear.

Seemed like my killing intent wind had worked. I was no longer terrified of the bearded man. I was no longer scared of my life.

I cracked my neck, holding a hand on the open side of it. I groaned. I liked cracking bones, whether it was my own or my opponent's. "Alright, let's get started," I yelled over the roar of fire. I was sure that Yamamoto heard me, too.

I got the sudden urge to duck. So I did, while making my body practically saturated with all the five elements of chakra, enhancing my body's reaction time to inhumane levels with lightning chakra, increasing the strength to the extreme with earth chakra, boosting my body's speed with extreme amounts of wind chakra, raising my joints' flexibility and mobility with water chakra, and lastly, make my punches and kicks have a poisonous after effect with fire chakra. I could use all natures of chakra at the same time. I was the very definition of a chakra monster taken human form, just that I was one hundred percent human, just with enhancements. In all departments. Yes, even my-

Dammit! I wasn't focusing! I ducked underneath a swing of a sword aimed to decapitate me from behind. Thank goodness for my lightning chakra and wind chakra. Hell, everything I was thankful for. I lashed out with my foot, and I felt it connect with something rock hard. But even if it was something rock hard I still managed to make my opponent skid backwards a great distance. Well, not taking the fact that I was channelling earth chakra through my entire body's muscles. I made Yamamoto slide back over eighty feet from the sheer force of my kick. And combined with the Asura Path's natural strength and speed giving ability, I was able to make an extreme impression on Yamamoto's psyche. And his physical body. Or spiritual. I didn't really know which was which any longer. But it didn't matter in the end. I was able to kick ass, even Yamamoto's wrinkly old ass. That was all that mattered to me at that moment.

I turned around to see if Yamamoto was any hurt. It would be good if I broke one or three of his ribs. Or in between, or even higher.

Never mind. As long as I was careful not to give into temptation to use the too powerful Mangekyo Sharingan techniques, I was good.

Yamamoto was in relatively good shape still, despite being on the business end of a Rinnegan user's earth chakra and Asura Path enhanced kick. Namely, me.

I was not going to get a lax guard, however. That could spell the end of that little all-out spar. Speaking of all out, maybe I should too. That way I would be able to maybe get Yamamoto to reveal his legendary and secretive Bankai. I wove through three hand seals, Dog, Boar, Dragon, and drew on more of my massive chakra reserves. I willed whatever moisture was left in the air, and promptly shouted, "Water release, Great Water Dragon!"

With that shout came a gigantic water dragon out of nowhere. It even touched the very top of the barrier as huge as it was. I willed it to roar, to intimidate, surprise and startle whomever had plans to harm anyone that was either important to me or important to the plot of Bleach. I was going to protect my loved ones, especially a sexy paper lady by the name of Konan, who also happened to be my lover, and Zabuza and Haku, and defend whomsoever was important to the plot of Bleach. And hopefully, with this battle, I too would be important to the storyline of Bleach.

The Water dragon did roar, and roar it did. The sound waves that originated from the great water dragon's throat were enough to blow away the highly spoken of and legendary flames of Ryuujin Jakka, clearing away any flames that were near either me or the water dragon itself.

Yamamoto stared at the water dragon, a dragon of Chinese descent, oddly reminiscent of Hitsugaya's ice dragon generated by his Zanpakuto's special ability. Its roar was lengthened, and then, when it finished, the flames took up the call of challenge. The flames too soared to the very top of the one kilometre tall barrier. But the flames couldn't hold their altitude, unlike the great and tangible water dragon that was feeding off my chakra. I wasn't about to run out of chakra any time soon, either, so I didn't mind it.

Then the water dragon lost height. Rapidly. Its glowing red eyes were staring directly into the red eyes of the Captain Commander, approaching the bald man with such speed that it almost broke the sound barrier.

Just in time to respond to the water dragon's quick approach the Captain Commander poured his spiritual power into his sword, lighting it up with extremely large amounts of fire. The fires were extremely intense, but they didn't instantly vaporize the chakra saturated water dragon upon contact. No, rather, it steamed heavily. It wasn't enough. The water dragon crashed into the place where the Captain Commander stood, splashing water everywhere, even as far as hitting all five of the barrier's sides, albeit harmlessly.

I stared warily at the place where the Captain Commander should have stood on, but realizing that he must have done, I rolled forward, and I heard a clang. It was like metal – a sword, perhaps – hitting solid rock. I quickly righted myself and looked where I had stood not a second ago. There, in his flaming, scarred glory was the Captain Commander, calmly looking at me with calculating eyes. Ryuujin Jakka was held steadily in one of his hands, flaming brightly.

Suddenly he vanished, and I used a sealless shunshin to move six feet forwards. It didn't take a toll on my chakra, at least not noticeably. Again, the sound of steel hitting solid rock could be heard over the massive flames that Ryuujin Jakka produced.

He disappeared again, and it was faster than anything I had ever seen. I couldn't follow his speed as the Captain Commander used Shunpo to disappear and reappear, zigzagging forwards towards me rapidly. I desperately brought up a hand to do a slight defence against Yamamoto's style of attacking, or even his sword. It was a pitiful thought, but I reacted immediately without thinking.

And then, when Yamamoto's Ryuujin Jakka was inches away from cutting off my hand, something strange happened.

A black rod with an ominous red glint on it appeared in my hand, effectively blocking Yamamoto's sword. I was too startled by the sudden appearance to take note that it was the same type of metal rod that Pain, or Nagato, used when he was alive.

Yamamoto jumped backwards after seeing the metal rod. I was staring at the rod, trying to take note of anything unusual that had happened. I checked my chakra reserves. No, nothing noticeable on the large scale. I still was at somewhere near full capacity, despite just having used the massive water dragon. I could still be considered a tailless Tailed Beast. The other tailless Tailed Beast from Water Country, from Kiri.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, and refocused on the strange thick metal stick that was in my hands. I thought of Pain, or Nagato, and his apparent creation of those metal chakra receivers after half a second.

Then a wide grin spread across my face. This was going to be awesome.

I looked at the old man with a wide grin that I intentionally turned around to look mad. "So, no questions about how I managed to create this thing out of freaking nowhere?" I asked, sounding cocksure of myself. I wasn't, to be honest. I actually just wanted to scare, or otherwise intimidate, the bearded and scarred man.

Yamamoto's head shook from left to right. "No. Now let us continue, Takuma," he answered. I was sure that he was glaring at me with something akin to wonderment. He was without a doubt wondering where I got that incredibly hard metal stick from. I was wondering, too. But I thought immediately of the Creation Of All Things. It might just have had something to do with it. I mean, Nagato didn't have an apparent source as to where he got those rods from. So I simply assumed that it was Creation Of All Things technique that did that.

Now if I could just remember that feeling...

Got it down! It felt like simply channelling normal chakra, albeit willing something to appear into my hand. In this case a black with a red tint metal stick that was nigh unbreakable, if not.

I held out my free left hand and in it appeared the same black rod. It was the same length, too. Two feet long, and pointy at both ends. However, it felt as if my grip on the metal could not be broken at all, and it also felt as if I knew how to handle them. Perhaps the information on how to handle the half inch thick sticks were supplied by the Rinnegan, but to be brutally honest, I didn't care. All I wanted was results, toll on my chakra be damned to an eternity to hell.

I refocused back to the battle, just in time to see Yamamoto's Ryuujin Jakka approach me rapidly. I parried with one of the metal sticks, and sure enough, it didn't break, it didn't even get scratched, as dense as it was. Only a person in Sage Mode should be able to break it.

And thus began a deadly dance of blades. With a stab, a parry followed by the opponent. With each slash a block. The deadly dance lasted for a while, and considering that I had no experience with blades whatsoever – I was a ninjutsu specialist – I was doing pretty good against Yamamoto, who just so happened to be the best swordsman that the entirety of Soul Society had to offer. The knowledge of how to use the blades had flooded my brain instantly, and it had felt very much like it had come from my eyes. That I was able to hold my own against the Captain Commander for over a thousand years told me that not only was it information containing intelligence on how I could use the chakra disruption blades, but also muscle memory. Muscle memory was purely mental, despite what others might tell you. Muscle memory is in the brain itself, not in the muscles. If the muscle memories were in the muscles themselves then the muscles would have to have some sort of biological data bank. It doesn't have any sort of biological data bank. Anyway, if my Rinnegan could flood my brain with information like it had done, then I don't even want to know what else it can do. Actually, no. I _do_ want to know what else the Rinnegan can supply me with.

I stabbed at the Captain Commander's stomach, and the Captain Commander jumped back. We both regrouped ourselves, physically – spiritually, if you want to get fancy and technical – and mentally.

We both tensed our muscles the exact same time, we both took our desired stances – mine a double bladed stance, while Yamamoto took hold of his sword with both of his hands, taking the traditional kendo stance – at the exact same time.

I took that moment to survey the battlefield. Yes, the entire Sokyoku hill was firmly and absolutely scorched and steaming, because of what leftover water decided to be stubborn and stay. The flames had not died down, though. They were still roaring, covering us from view from the audience.

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><p>The audience, especially the Captains of Eighth and Thirteenth – luckily Ukitake had been well rested and well in health – were astonished that the flames hadn't died down yet. While they couldn't detect anything, they were sure that their Captain Commander would win the fight within a blink of an eye. But alas that was not the case. They knew that the Captain Commander would not just do something as irresponsible as pressing his spiritual pressure for no reason at all.<p>

"What's going on in there?" Ichigo loudly asked anyone who had the necessary knowledge.

Rukia bashed Ichigo on the top of his head. To be able to do that she had to jump, though. "Idiot! They're fighting, of course!" Then she turned around, crossing her arms and huffing. She sported a light blush, though. She was embarrassed to know that she was attracted to Ichigo, despite how much she refused it. A voice inside her head, a voice that sounded suspiciously much like me, resounded in her head, '_You know you like him. Why don't you just bag him and be done with it_?' But she shook her head to remove the voice. She thought that she might have gone insane, but that was highly unlikely that she was going insane, because she was a fuck mothering Kuchiki! Even if she was adopted!

"Which makes me wonder," Ukitake said with his kind voice, trying to find the right words to voice his thoughts properly. His voice took the attention of most of those around him, the Shinigami – mostly – turning their gazes to him as opposed to look at the display of immense and unfelt fire. "How come the shinobi is able to fight Captain Commander Yamamoto for such a long time? As far as my knowledge goes, the shinobi has no high speed technique that allows travel over a distance. Curious. Very curious."

Ichigo shrugged, and in his usual, confident and loud voice said, "There's the shunshin technique."

That brought the attention of most of the Shinigami around, especially that of the Twelfth Division Captain. He was without a doubt thinking of dissecting me to research me and my capabilities and properties of chakra, as well as the chakra network. Mayuri Kurotsuchi, in his squeaky and self confident voice, asked the Kurosaki teenage boy, "What is this technique that you explained, this 'shunshin'?" while scratching his chin in thought. He had a million thoughts running through his head at the moment, and one of them was the dissection of the shinobi, to see what made us tick. He would not touch any of the shinobi if I had a say in it. Unless it was Madara, Orochimaru or Kabuto, or some rapist, child abuser, or other disgusting things. Then I would want them to feel the pain, to stay conscious while being dissected. And I would sit back and laugh at them like a maniac. Because they deserved it. They deserved it all.

Ichigo frowned at the scientific curiosity of the Twelfth Division Captain, but answered nonetheless for the benefit of those listening in. "It's a technique," and then he began to explain the workings of the shunshin. He was questioned further by Renji, about what chakra really was. Ichigo had sighed in response and explained the workings of chakra. That it was a mixture of mental and physical energies. That merely spurred everyone on, firing questions left and right, only answering those that he cared about.

Then a voice seemed to echo throughout the entire Sokyoku hill, even as far as going through the reiatsu suppressing barrier.

The voice said, "Bankai, Densetsu no Ryuujin no Kaen!"

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Bad ass grandpa is bad ass! Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to you, man! Yes, you! The reader! I love you just the way you are! Unless you're an asshole. Then you can go fuck yourself.

Anyway, '_Densetsu no Ryuujin no Kaen_' can roughly be translated to '_The Legendary Flame Of The Dragon God_'.

By the way, you can influence what Yamamoto's Bankai can be! If you drop a review or send me a personal message you can tell me what you think his Bankai should be. I will take each and every idea and seriously consider it.

Oh, and special thanks to nartog! And not just him, either! I want to thank everyone, especially you that are reading this right now, for reading! If you would be so kind as to drop a review, I promise, if either through a personal message or through an author's note, I _will_ respond to your review. Without question!

Also, the poll's still going. Oh, and don't forget! You can still influence my decision as to what Yamamoto's Bankai will be. I already have something in mind, but the idea can easily be shattered and rebuilt into a masterpiece! :D


	54. Ghostly Apparition

**Author's note:** Two things; merry Christmas! This is my gift to you, the reader!  
>Second, the poll is still going for those who haven't voted yet.<p>

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><p>While Ichigo had explained the audience what chakra was, along with several other things, the Captain Commander and I had been fighting brutally.<p>

Yamamoto had even used Kido after it was obvious that neither of us would be able to overpower each other in a fight with swords. Or in my case, chakra disruption blades. He had resorted to high level Kido spells, the highest spell being Hado level seventy three, Soren Sokatsui.

Right until he made the Hado level ninety, in hopes to both capture me and injure me. Kurohitsugi.

Thankfully I recognized the beginnings of the incantation – when Aizen had used it, I just thought 'bad fucking ass!', especially when Ichigo broke out of it – and leapt out of the space that Kurohitsugi took.

Not even the strongest barrier of the Kido corps could fully stand against the power of Captain Commander Yamamoto's Bankai. Sure, it held up against the brunt of the reiatsu, but even outside the barrier the reiatsu could be felt all across Seireitei at a Third Seat level reiatsu at the edges of Seireitei.

For the audience, it felt like the Captain Commander was present, and slightly miffed about something.

The strongest Zanpakuto in all of Soul Society, dwarfing even the full power of the Sokyoku that was said to have the power of a million Zanpakuto combined, was released completely. It was going to kick ass and chew human meat. And I was the Zanpakuto's 'human meat'.

"Oh shit..." I whispered pathetically as I stared at the gigantic winged dragon that was behind Yamamoto. Its wing span was easily eighty feet each wing, and its body was well over two hundred feet long. It was clearly made out of fire, as its entire body was burning with, surprisingly enough, what I assumed was tangible fire. Fire was energy, not matter. But it seemed that Yamamoto's Bankai gave physics the middle finger and said 'Screw the rules, I'm Densetsu no Ryuujin no Kaen, mother fucker!' to the established laws of physics.

And that wasn't all.

Yamamoto's body was surrounded by a flaming set of armour. There were two horns on the chin, and there were two holes in the helmet. One slitted and wide that allowed Yamamoto to see what was in front of him, and one on the chin that allowed his beard – which was strangely enough not burned – to waft in the wind, defying all sense and logic, because there was _no wind_. The armour was made out of tangible fire. The shoulder pads had three spikes on them, each giving off ominous flames. The Captain Commander's sword was flaming

Oh, and the flames were _fucking_ _white_, with light blue outlines.

All of Yamamoto's flames that had been surrounding the edges of the extremely strong barrier became white with blue outlines to it, and began to rapidly swerve around Yamamoto, quickly building up something around him.

First, ribs were formed around him, well over three feet away from him so that he had some space. Then the skull formed as the flames continued to climb up. The skull had three eyes, one vertical eye on its forehead and the two in the normal human positions, similar to Aizen's most powerful form when he was up against Ichigo before Ichigo used the Final Getsuga Tensho. The eyes began to glow dark blue, as veins began to appear from nowhere as more and more fire poured onto it. The flames brushed against the two arms, creating muscles and strengthening the bones. Then armour came into being. From behind the thing that covered Captain Commander Yamamoto's form, the armour enveloped it, yet the entire thing was transparent, as opposed to the armour that Yamamoto clad. Like Yamamoto's personal white blue armour, the helmet had two horns, but as opposed to on the chin, this one had the two horns on its forehead. The shoulder pads too had three horns on each of it. In the strong hands of the thing that surrounded the Captain Commander were two swords, each sword proportionally large to the thing. The swords took the form of standard katana, albeit being made out of flames.

Basically, it was a two armed, armour clad, dual sword wielding Susanoo.

I didn't notice it, because I was too captivated by the likeness between the Susanoo technique and Yamamoto's Susanoo like spiritual construct, but the flames that had brushed up against the entire barrier's walls were gone, instead gathering to create the Captain Commander's construct.

The dragon made out of white fire then roared at me. Sure enough, the wind picked up massively, and I would have been sent to the barrier's wall that was facing the people looking at the battle with shock and awe, especially seeing as the legendary and highly spoken of Bankai of the over two thousand year old Captain Commander Yamamoto decided to show itself to the world.

And while the audience stared in surprise at their newly gained visibility of the action, I was fighting an internal battle.

Fight him.

Give up.

Those were my two options, and considering the circumstances, the option of giving up was very welcoming. I could sit down and rest, Konan sitting on my lap, Zabuza arguing with Haku for some reason – or rather Zabuza growling at Haku while Haku wistfully drank green tea – and Soul Society watching us shinobi with complete and utter fear.

I grinned widely, adding a slight touch of insanity in it. "Screw giving up, I'll fight until I can't fight anymore! That's my ninja way, and I'll protect it with my life!" I yelled out, letting go of my mental barriers on my killing intent. Thankfully I wasn't focusing the killing intent on anyone, so Yamamoto wouldn't be shivering in his fire clad armour from fear.

Then I did something really, really stupid. Though in proper hindsight, it was probably what made me survive the little spar, but it was still stupid enough to warrant blue balls for a month.

I activated my Susanoo.

The silvery chakra construct came into being quickly. I did not bother to take my time to create my Susanoo, seeing as intimidating Yamamoto was was as unlikely a toddler winning in a fight against the Sage Of The Six Paths to the death. In short, very, very unlikely. Especially since the Sage Of The Six Paths was stronger than I was, and I liked to consider myself dwarfing even the Fourth Hokage in general strength. I _did_ have three tails worth of chakra, and said chakra was incredibly potent as well, judging by what Orochimaru said about me during the battle on the Kage booth rooftop. I had a huge library of techniques in my mind, well over a hundred different techniques and their many variations stored in my mind in each of the five elements. And I wasn't counting the apparent use of elemental combination focused bloodlines.

Twin Rinnegan popped into existence inside my Susanoo's eye sockets. They looked directly into the white Susanoo lookalike of the Captain Commander's with hatred and a humongous lust for blood and battle.

The three arms of my Susanoo flared to life, already covered in the angelic armour. Three tails wafted in the air, connected to my Susanoo's spine, a hole in the armour to accommodate the three tails.

The Sword Of Totsuka in its right hand, glowing, almost as if it was flaming with pure chakra. In one of its left hands was the Yata Mirror, a shield capable of blocking and deflecting any elemental attack, no matter the strength. The third arm sprouted off at the elbow of the left arm, and in its hand it held a gourd that was for sealing. I instinctively knew that if I wanted my Sword Of Totsuka to seal, it would. If I wanted it to cut, it would.

And if I wanted it to be lit aflame by the black blazes of Amaterasu, it would.

Suddenly, as if reading my thoughts, my Sword Of Totsuka lookalike lit alight by black flames, increasing its cutting power and adding the effect of burning through even the hottest of flames, seeing as Amaterasu was bound to be even hotter than even the flames of Yamamoto's Bankai.

Strangely enough, my flames had a red outline to it, exactly the opposite of my opponent's flames.

I didn't notice.

I was too far gone in a lust for blood. I wanted blood. No one would deny me my want for blood. I wanted to see my enemy's blood flow in all directions! I wanted to spill the blood of the Captain Commander! To hell with my plans of world peace and prosperity! Where the _fucking fuck_ was the fun in world peace? How would natural selection happen if everyone used their brains and not their brawn? How would humanity survive if they didn't do something about the problems that is world peace? Well, screw all that philosophical bullshit I just spouted, though. I was cackling maniacally, lusting for battle and blood. In fact, so far gone I was in the blood lust that I didn't even notice my Susanoo growing in size. I was, in my extreme desire for a battle worthy of the halls of fame, subconsciously pouring my chakra into the Susanoo.

Then I snapped. The last defences in my mind against the strong desire for blood and battle all but crumbled. Only one last defence was in place, but it wouldn't trigger, so to speak.

I threw my head back and laughed with insane fervour. Oh, this was definitely the battle I was searching for all that time! I had sparred with Zabuza, knowing full well that if we had gone all out I would have won _so_ badly. Simply because I was a better shinobi than him! I was a better shinobi than anyone, even the legendary and praised Hashirama Senju, who stood up against _both_ the Nine Tailed Fox _and_ Madara Uchiha _at the same time_, when Madara Uchiha had the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in his cursed eye sockets and the Nine Tailed Fox under his full control.

I was powerful enough to be the second coming of the Sage Of The Six Paths!

_Are you really?_

What? Who said that? Actually, never mind who said that, I _knew_ I was the second coming of the legendary Sage. However, I knew that in an all out battle I wouldn't stand a chance against the original Sage Of The Six Paths, but that didn't mean I wasn't the second coming of the Sage! I had the power to back it up, I just needed to know what the true nature of chakra was. If I couldn't find out the true nature of chakra, then I wouldn't be the second coming of the highly praised Sage.

_Do you not realize that the true nature of chakra is not to be revealed to those of evil intent?_

Who said that? I looked around wildly, a crazed glint in my eyes. "Is that you, Truth? Have you come to play games with me again?

I heard the voice inside my head sigh, sadness clearly evident in its voice. All of a sudden time seemed to slow down to a stop. Nothing moved. The barrier wasn't visually straining against the immense and boundary pushing reiatsu. Yamamoto's Bankai powered white and blue flames didn't flicker around wildly, searching for anything to burn. My Susanoo didn't waver at all.

Time had effectively stopped.

Something appeared in between me and Yamamoto. It seemed as if it were a ghost. It had no physical shape, seemingly distorting its form until it looked like a parody of the human shape. It had no visible gender, and judging by the voice that had been speaking directly to my head, it was sexless. Or rather, it spoke in a tone that betrayed nothing, no emotion flickered, no distinct tone could be heard. It was as if I was reading from a book, but in a way it still resounded within my head. It was without distinction. It was a truly ghostly voice. However, I hazarded a guess that the ghost was male, seeing as the upper body had no bumps whatsoever that would otherwise indicate breasts of a female. But neither did it have a bulge in between its two legs. So I got the distinct impression that it really had no gender.

The ghost glided over burnt rubble and still steaming – though the steam had stopped its ascent towards the top of the barrier due to the time stop – piles of rock. Nothing stopped its progress forwards. Not even when it made contact with my Susanoo. The chakra construct made way for the ghost. Then the ghost got precisely a foot in front of me.

For some mysterious reason, I was not scared of the apparition of a possibly deceased person. I couldn't explain it, the feeling of calmness and power that the spirit radiated. It made me feel at ease with myself. It completely evaporated the strong desire for blood and battle. It made me truly calm with myself. The closer the spirit got the calmer I felt. It was a strange feeling, having a calmness emotion flood me. It felt as if the ghostly spirit was the epitome and incarnation of the emotion called 'calm'. That was possibly the best way to explain it.

The ghost slowly but deliberately put its hands on my cheeks. Then it got closer and closer to my face. I just noticed that I could not move, I could not even blink, yet my eyes did not dry up or water. I could only stare deeply at what I assumed was the head of the ghost.

Suddenly the ghost formed a mouth that appeared to smile proudly. That was when I noticed that the ghost had actually formed its body more visibly while it had approached me. I had simply been staring at its head all the time. It had formed two bumps on its chest, not large, though. Definitely smaller than Konan's. For some reason, however, I felt ashamed of that thought, as if I had thought that my mother had small breasts or something along those lines.

So the ghost was actually female. Good to know, I guess.

The ghost then formed its nose, then its wrinkled cheeks, its forehead, and around its mouth was wrinkles that were without a doubt caused by smiling too much or something like that. Then the eyes. Its eyes, while they did not take a colour, had wrinkles around them, and were squinting, probably due to poor eyesight. But you could tell that they were proud, proud of the achievements of another.

It was as if the female ghost was proud of a child.

_Are you prepared to know the true nature of chakra, my son?_

I was mentally taken aback. This was not my mother. I knew – and remembered – my mother. She, for one, was smaller than me when I became seventeen. This ghost had formed its legs, and the legs' feet touched the ground. So that meant that the motherly ghost was just as tall as me, seeing as we met face to face. And I was well over a hundred years old, coma included. Second, my mother had much longer hair, reaching to her shoulder blades. This woman's hair was cropped short and tied to a tight bun that was leaning more on the right side than to the left side of the head.

However, I noticed too that she hadn't moved her mouth when she spoke. She apparently didn't have to move her mouth and produce sounds via her vocal chords to communicate with other people, namely me.

She was very old, appearing as if she had to be on a death bed.

I heard her voice, which had taken the distinction that females had in their voice. Just that this one was worn and old.

_Are you prepared to face the values that the chakra that the books of your father left talked about has? Are you prepared to forever be bound to the true nature of chakra, my dearest and only son? You will be tested by the true nature of chakra, you will feel hatred, jealousy, greed, and other disgusting things that people feel when you are to spread around the teachings of chakra. Are you willing to face those challenges, my son?_

I could move my arms again. I felt a certain numbness in them, but I knew I could move them. My Rinnegan were wide with wonderment. Who could this woman be? How was she able to communicate with me through telepathy? Actually, I didn't want to know how she could talk to me without moving her vocal chords. I felt the same numbness spread throughout my entire body. I could move my lips, form words with my voice. I decided to answer her with a simple answer. An answer I knew would satisfy both me and her. I felt the need to impress her above anything else. I felt as if I knew her from somewhere. I didn't know where from I knew her, I didn't know how or why I recognized her. I felt that I didn't care.

"Yes. I wish to know the true nature of chakra. I am ready to face the values of chakra father has written so much about. I will spread the teachings of chakra to the whole wide world. I am prepared to take the responsibilities that knowing the true nature of chakra onto my shoulders. I am prepared to face the hatred, the jealousy and the greed that people will expose me to. I will take as many disciples as possible in order to make everyone feel welcome. I will do what is necessary to discover the true nature of chakra," I hesitated, because for some reason, despite all those words, one struck me as incredibly important to say. "Mother."

I didn't know why I said those words. They just flooded out of me. I didn't know why I thought that this woman that had taken the form of a transparent ghost was my mother. She wasn't, because I had solid memories of my own mother. So why did I call this woman mother? Where did my wise sounding words come from? Where did my determination come from?

Why did I feel scared, yet excited, to know what chakra's real nature was?

The ghost's smile widened, still wearing its proud properties.

The woman opened her squinting eyes. I took a sharp intake of precious air, though it was highly unneeded to do so.

She had the Rinnegan. And despite the white transparency of her body, the Rinnegan maintained its purple colour.

_The true nature of chakra, my son, is to protect your loved ones, your precious people. You will be known for your eyes, my son. You will gain power beyond measure, yet you will face things that will terrify other people. You will face the worst enemy humanity has to offer; itself. You will succeed in earning peace and the trust of humankind. You will become the Sage Of The Six Paths._

My Rinnegan eyes widened even further. "So I am the second coming of the Sage Of The Six Paths?" I hesitated slightly once again. "Mother?"

The smile that the woman had waned, almost frowning.

_You are my son. The woman you think to be your mother has been taking care of you in my stead, so that you could grow up. I knew your 'mother' and your 'father' would separate violently. I knew you would grieve over the loss of a father figure. I knew you would lose all your friends by moving. I knew that you would feel the sadness that life can give. I knew everything that had happened in your previous life. It was all necessary for you to know sadness. To make sure no one would face pain of loneliness and the pain of abandonment ever again._

My anger simmered. So this woman, supposedly my mother, had known about my life? Had known about the sadness I had been through? Why would she, my supposed mother, want her child to face such bad things that humanity offers? Why would she want her supposed child go through such pains that life has to offer? It was unfair!

Tears prickled my eyes, and to resist the tears I closed them. I didn't get to see my true mother smile both warmly and proudly.

_You have faced so much pain. You have witnessed the pain that other people have gone through and been broken by. You will gain power beyond measure, to protect your loved ones. You will be the only one who will have this power. The power to protect is a power many have. Yet to protect everyone is an impossibility unless you have omnipresence. Even I, a hopeful mother of a powerful son, knows that. So therefore, with my eyes, I will grant you that power. The power of omnipresence. You will be everywhere, yet nowhere at the same time. You will effectively be immortal._

My jaws dropped in surprise. "The Rinnegan can do that? And what do you mean, the true nature of chakra is to protect loved ones?" I asked, dropping questions left and right. Though it was only one question each direction.

The smile on the woman got smug, yet somehow retaining its pride... for me. She was proud of me, for what I had become. Despite the blood and battle lust I had. She was proud of me. Of _me_. The feeling made me warm and fuzzy inside.

_In that order, yes. The Rinnegan is a true gift from the Gods. As for your second question, no. The true nature of chakra is not to protect loved ones. It is to protect _as many people_ as possible. And with the power I will give you by merging my Rinnegan with yours, you will be able to be everywhere, witness everything at the same time. You will have the power to help everyone. At the same time, even. With omnipresence one is able to literally be everywhere. You can create solid clones that can take damage, as opposed to the clones that can only get one hit. Basically you can be several places at once, and all because of the power of omnipresence._

Then her smile, my mother's smile, turned sad.

_I wish I could give you omnipotence and omniscience, but those are literal impossibilities, even for us Rinnegan wielders. The Gods of the Realms, or as you call them, 'universes', themselves, the ones that have given me these eyes, are not capable of omniscience and omnipotence. They are close, but they realize that they cannot have it. However, they can grant others the power of themselves. They can grant us the power to help people get along. They have granted _you_ the rights for omnipresence. Use it wisely, my dearest and only son._

Then she walked towards me. Slowly approaching me. "Wait," I said in a small voice. I sounded pathetic, if I had taken a second to recognize my own voice.

The ghost- no... my _true_ mother heard the small request, though. She stopped her slow approach. She said something without opening her mouth.

_Yes, my son?_

"Who... are you?" I asked. "For that matter, who is my real father? Do I have any sisters? Brothers? The one I thought was my mother had actually adopted me? If you are my mother, then why can't I remember you? How do I not remember an orphanage if I have been adopted? Why do you say that I am the Sage Of The Six Paths, not the second coming of the Sage Of The Six Paths? What do you mean, omnipresence grants me the ability to make clones? Wait, I actually understand that one, it's like that one cat vampire from Hellsing that was literally everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Does that mean I can't die from being damaged? And besides that, what abilities does the Rinnegan also have, besides the one I already know of? There's control over gravity, there's sucking in chakra, there's super strength and speed, there's the ability to interrogate people and tell if they're lying or not as long as you have a good hold of them, there's the ability to resurrect people, there's taking the very soul out of a person, then there's the summoning of all things that the Rinnegan wielder wants to summon, and for a merged Rinnegan, there's omnipresence, as long as it's allowed by the Gods Of The Realms, right?"

While I had been truly letting loose on my questions, my _true_ mother's smiled got wider and wider, until finally it was a full blown toothy grin. Her open Rinnegan eyes sparkled with amusement.

_Now now, my genius son. Can you not figure out some of those yourself? In that order, I will answer you. I am Izanami no Mikoto. I am the supposed Goddess of Creation and Death. The first bearer of the Rinnegan, given to me by the _real_ Gods Of The Realms. Your father, and yes, this will sound disgusting, is my brother, Izanagi no Mikoto. Two siblings, but both are dead. Hiruko, the brother, and Awashima, the sister. They were deformed when they were born, not real divine spirits, so we sent them to the Elemental Nations, or as we called them, the Great Islands. They died shortly after they landed in the Great Islands. Your birth was perfect. Perfect in every way. You were formed perfectly. Your birth was famous among us Gods, and for some reason, the Gods Of The Realms were highly interested in you. However, before we could answer to their pleas to see you and give you gifts of power, I died and went to the Underworld. And as for you, you were visited by the Gods Of The Realms. You were given a destiny by Fate, one of the Gods Of The Realms. You would attain the same eyes as I. You would be given the power of omnipresence. You would give peace to the Greatest Of The Realms. The Realm you identify as 'Naruto'. That is still a task that awaits you, though. You will return to that Realm to rectify your past mistakes._

_And as for your biological mother, she gave physical birth to you, my son. You were to live in a sad, chaotic, random place that would teach you sadness and pain. The Gods Of The Realms saw something in you, and I believe that it was the peace of the Greatest Of The Realms that they saw in your future._

_You don't remember me because I haven't merged with you yet._

_You were not adopted._

_As for why I call you the Sage Of The Six Paths, you will have to discover yourself._

_Yes, you will receive damage like any other person. You can just regenerate that damage by believing yourself to be somewhere else in that point of time._

_None. A _merged_ Rinnegan grants true omnipresence. That 'cat vampire' did not have the true gift of omnipresence. That can only be given by the Gods Of The Realms._

_And that is correct. A merged Rinnegan gives the user, you, true omnipresence. There is no one else who is able to be everywhere yet nowhere at the same time. Not even that 'cat vampire'... because he can't travel between Realms as he pleases, can he?_

Before I could answer my true Goddess mother she flung herself quickly at me, as if to tightly hug me, and she merged with my body.

Memories returned to me.

I was truly the son of Izanagi no Mikoto, he who invites, and Izanami no Mikoto, she who invites.

Which made me become disgusted. Really? Izanagi and Izanami were _siblings_, for christ's sake! It was incest! But oh well, my mother _did_ mention that my birth was perfect in every way. I didn't understand how it was perfect, but screw perfection, I had a battle to fight!

But I felt the burning need to acknowledge some of my mother's wise words.

"I will protect those I love," I began, determination damn near _visible_ in my voice. My voice broke through the barriers of time and carried throughout the entire Sokyoku hill, heard by everyone. The flames slowly began to sway back and forth, the Amaterasu flames that were outlined an ominous red began wafting backwards and forwards again, the steam still left over from my great water dragon began to calmly ascend upwards. "I will defend those I can defend," I continued. I saw Yamamoto's well muscled chest begin to rise and fall, the white and light blue flames burning again.

Then I yelled out, "Because _that_ is the true nature of chakra! And I'm nothing if not chakra incarnate!"

In an explosion of pure silver chakra I felt my chakra capacity multiply several times, beyond what I believed to be the combined chakra of all the nine Tailed Beasts. I felt knowledge come from my eyes, knowledge of the Asura Path's true ability to create multiple arms and create several robotic machines to aid in combat. I felt my control over my chakra become perfect. I felt knowledge seep quickly from my eyes that my blood and battle lust from using the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities would cease to exist. I felt the knowledge being sent to my brain that my omnipresence had yet to take effect. Merging Rinnegan would take some time, several months, in fact, or so my knowledge told me.

I felt godlike. But I would use the power I just got to help people, to rescue innocents, to save people from themselves. I would use it to protect humanity.

Let the true, all out fight between giants begin.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I am really, really proud of this chapter. I researched a little bit on Shinto mythology, so some of the mythological stuff _should_ be true. Not Izanami having the Rinnegan, obviously, seeing as the Samsara Eye, the Rinnegan for those not in the know, is purely Naruto.

And can you guess what Izanami no Mikoto meant when she said that Shinji Takuma was the Sage Of The Six Paths? Because that's right. He is. He is, after all, the perfect being born from an imperfect marriage. Perfection born from imperfection. The imperfection being the marriage between sister and brother, of course. Yuck, whoever had invented those two gods sure had incest as a fetish, or didn't particularly mind it.

And as for the true nature of chakra (about protecting everyone and everything that's worth protecting, basically), who won't see that one coming as an ass pull from Kishimoto-sama for some reason or other? Seriously, it's common knowledge that the secret behind chakra is to protect. It's common manga sense that the secret behind chakra is to protect the innocent, the loved ones, and those that deserve to be saved. Seriously...

And I know that removing the blood lust (thus a consequence to using power), making Shinji have more chakra than the combination of all the Tailed Beasts (***SPOILER ALERT*** but something will happen that will surprise you, though, for those who dislike godlike characters! ***SPOILER ALERT***), giving him perfect control over said chakra, is more godlike than any other character – except the fused SS4 version of Vegeta and Goku. Those guys can pound anything with a flick of a fucking wrist to dust! – you have read about. But hey, it's my story, isn't it? I just hope that you will say something along the lines of 'this fucking sucks now that you've made Shinji more powerful than the Sage Of The Six Paths – who beat the Ten Tailed Beast, by the way!' or something. I'm totally fine if you flame me. Even if it's not constructive. I'll be more than happy to converse civilly with you as long as you're willing to converse.

_**BY THE WAY, MERRY CHRISTMAS! THIS IS MY GIFT TO YOU! :D**_

And I don't care what you say, I'll say Merry Christmas if I fucking feel like it. :D


	55. Fight! Fight! Fight!

**Author's note:** The poll is still going!

* * *

><p>I looked around, slightly bewildered. Where had my mother gone? Had she merged with me?<p>

Suddenly I felt a few memories jump into the forefront of my mind. It wasn't painful, as I had come to expect getting lots of information in a short period of time to be. No, but neither was it pleasant. It felt as if my brain was slowly, albeit surely, pressing its way against my skull.

The memories were select and few. There was information on the use of Izanagi, something I could have used to avoid death when I had died in the Naruto world. The Izanagi technique, when one possesses the Rinnegan, can be turned on forever, making sacrificing an eye to escape death unnecessary. With enough chakra, as in, with my chakra, it would be possible to keep it on for a very, very long time. I was able to escape death, if I so wished, while my body got used to the gift the Gods Of The Realms had given me; the gift of omnipresence. My coming power of omnipresence made Izanagi look like a poodle in comparison to a Great Dane. That was not to say I would be immortal, though. If I wished it, I could be gone to the afterlife. But I would only die if I knew that peace was to be true. Chakra is the most versatile power available in all universes, or so my knowledge that I had just gotten told me. It was a gift given to the humans of the Greatest Of The Realms, the Realm I called Naruto, as it was based around a thought that Masashi Kishimoto-sama made up. The Gods Of The Realms had apparently known that I would come to possess the Rinnegan as my true mother, Izanami no Mikoto, had the bloodline that was given to her by the Gods Of The Realms.

But enough about that. I had to prove to the Captain Commander of Soul Society that I was more than enough to handle any threat anyone would pose to the greater good of peace.

Peace...

At that moment, it became my life's goal to find true eternal peace for all humanity. It was an impossible dream. Or it would be, had I not had a merged Rinnegan and the power of omnipresence. I would gain the gift given by the Gods Of The Realms when my body was ready to receive the gift. It had to be used to it before the gift given by the Gods could be efficiently used, of course.

Again, I brought my thoughts back to the battle at hand while time took its sweet time resuming. It was important to show Yamamoto that I was more than worth installing into plans. He was Soul Society's leader, and despite my being potentially stronger than him, I didn't have the political standing nor the popularity and respect that the Captain Commander had. At least not yet. Besides, I was a shinobi. Shinobi work in and from the shadows. So it was best that the Captain Commander kept his position, kept the respect and popularity with his fellow Shinigami.

"Your attitude. It changed," I heard the old and booming voice of Yamamoto resound through the barrier. It was as if it had more power behind it, which honestly wasn't surprising at all, given that he had activated Bankai. And now that I spoke of the Bankai, the flames of my Amaterasu covered Sword Of Totsuka flared angrily, wafting in the air, searching for anything to burn. I wouldn't let it hit the Captain Commander, as he would die if the fires of Amaterasu would hit him.

I kept a calm expression on my face, relaxing my stance slightly. "I know. Something happened," I didn't feel the need to explain further. In fact, I felt quite the opposite. Explaining to the Captain Commander would effectively bring him up to speed about the Gods Of The Realms. That was not to happen. My true mother did not want that to happen. I wasn't about to question my spiritual and godly mother's intention. I wasn't about to say 'why not, mother?' to her.

I scratched my ear. "Something did happen, but I will not explain it. I have been informed that I should not tell anyone unless I feel that I can trust them with my life. Currently, there are only three people I feel I can trust with my life," Naruto Uzumaki, Fu, and Konan. Hopefully Konan will take up the name of Takuma. Konan Takuma. It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?

"But alas, we should fight each other to prove who is the stronger person," I said, and one could almost feel the calm aura I gave off. There was no killing bone in my body any longer. I felt no need to kill or murder anyone. My Rinnegan's drawback when using Susanoo, Kamui, Amaterasu, Koto Amatsukami, Tsukiyomi, or basically all the Mangekyo Sharingan abilities, was gone. I would no longer feel the need to kill, to murder, to battle, any longer. Perhaps I would kill someone, fight someone, but I would never _ever_ murder someone.

I knew that my Susanoo became more angelic. I didn't see the changes, except the front, but I knew that my Susanoo now had three sets of feathery wings that had a proportionally long wing span, enhancing its angelic appearance. The three tails at the tail bone had all disappeared. Replacing the tails were the wings. Not only that, but my Susanoo's arms, all three of them, were now covered with rosary beads. With the information and memories granted to me through the Rinnegan, I knew that the rosary beads were called the Rosary Beads Of Shiranui.

Yamamoto grunted, and swung his blade with a flick of his wrist. As his flaming blade stopped, the western styled dragon roared and charged my Susanoo. I poured slightly more chakra into my Susanoo. And by slightly I mean over three times Kage level. Which meant that my Susanoo got much larger, its spread wings brushing against the mile tall barrier's top.

The white fire dragon with a light blue outline to it crashed into my raised Yata Mirror. I was pushed slightly backwards by the sheer force of the head on collision of the fire dragon made out of surprisingly tangible flames. Didn't mean that the flames were any less hot, though. This time I felt the heat that came from the Captain Commander's Bankai. I didn't feel it as scorching hot, but rather uncomfortably warm.

I poured slightly, and this time I mean something a Chuunin would be jealous of, more chakra into the Susanoo's defensive structure, hardening both my hold on the ground and the Susanoo's ribs and shield. Then I began to push the tangible fire dragon back. This action seemed to surprise Yamamoto, seeing as his red eyes were wide in astonishment. It _almost_ made me proud of myself and my accomplishment, because _damn_ was it difficult to push that white fire dragon back.

"How can you block my Densetsu no Ryuujin no Kaen? Better yet, how can you block the fire dragon's head on charge? No one has been able to do that," he said, surprise and awe clearly heard in his voice. But then he steeled himself and began to squint his eyes yet again. "I see that I must take you seriously now. You might not be a threat to Soul Society, but then again, this is a simple all out spar."

I kept my calm expression and resumed my lax position. I was confident, not overconfident, that my Susanoo would be able to handle anything and everything that Yamamoto would throw at it. "Time to get serious," the Captain Commander continued. Then he used Shunpo to appear right in front of my incredibly tall Susanoo. He had one clenched hand behind himself, ready to punch something with extreme prejudice. And that something just oh so happened to be my Susanoo's ribs. I noticed that the Captain Commander's Susanoo lookalike didn't follow him, as Susanoo usually did, unless directed otherwise by the user.

"Single Bone!" he shouted, and threw his hand forwards, directing his punch to my silver coloured Susanoo's lower ribs. My Susanoo's lower ribs cracked, which surprised me, but it shouldn't have. This was the Captain Commander of Soul Society, Gotei thirteen, and had been for about a thousand years. He was bound to be immensely powerful. So not only did my Susanoo's lower ribs crack, they completely broke, despite the amount of chakra I had poured into the chakra construct.

The Captain Commander's clenched fist did not stop at my Susanoo's ribs, however. Yamamoto took another step forward, making his fist continue its path. His fist approached my face rapidly, but I had not stopped channelling chakra throughout my entire body, so the fist actually seemed as if it was quite slow and sluggish.

I didn't, however, have time to evade the debilitating punch. My body just simply wouldn't respond properly. My only hope to survive the oncoming punch was to not stop channelling chakra through my body.

The punch was aimed at my nose, and I could damn near feel the air pressure that followed it. It was about to reach my nose – it was only a hair's breadth away – before something very curious happened.

My Susanoo, almost as if it was sensing my predicament, had, in a sudden burst of lightning quick movement, grabbed hold of Yamamoto. The angelic Susanoo did not squeeze Yamamoto to the point where he would have cracked and broken a rib or three, because I didn't want him too badly injured.

That was when I began to look at my Susanoo. I was astonished by its angelic appearance. It had a helmet on, not unlike a stylized western medieval helmet. Just that where there would be ears, there were a small set of immobile and purely decorative wings. The mouth of the helmet was sharp to a point. There was only one hole for the eyes, and it was shaped like a very narrow T, with its two 'branches' slightly tilted upwards to increase its already ominous look. I didn't know how, but the helmet was both scary and angelic at the same time.

The armour was celestial in appearance. The armour was decorated with weeping angels, and it was solid in form and shape. Its shoulder pads were not spiky, as opposed to the Susanoo lookalike of the Captain Commander's. The shoulder pads were in fact bumpy, and I instinctively knew that it was so that strikes would be more easily deflected. Or something along those lines. The shoulder pads too had a saintly feel to them. The armour had images of weeping angels and a single angel that was not weeping in the middle of the breastplate. This non-weeping angel stared into the high heavens. There were two hornlike protrusions on that angel's forehead, and there were six tomoe around the neck, in a necklace style fashion. The angel also had three sets of feathery wings, and in the middle of each of the wings were what seemed like stylized swirls. Similar, actually, to the Uzumaki clan's swirl.

And that was not to forget the arms. Now my Susanoo had four arms, separating at the elbow. My scimitar, Tsumugari, was in the innermost right hand, but it had changed. Instead of a scimitar, it was now a proportionally long katana. I knew that it was still the Tsumugari, because my merged Rinnegan had given me knowledge of it. In my outermost right hand was the Amaterasu covered Sword Of Totsuka. In my outermost left hand was the Yata Mirror, only instead of the normal design the Yata Mirror usually had – where it had three concentric circles, quite reminiscent of the Rinnegan – it had a design of six circling fireballs with Uzumaki swirls on them, along with a winged female angel that too looked upwards to the skies. Interestingly enough, the female had cheeks that were dissolving into paper. Of course, the image itself was still, unmoving. So my love for Konan apparently also transferred to the Susanoo. I wasn't about to complain, for I did truly love her, despite not really _knowing_ her for a long time. And then there was the innermost left arm. It too had a shield, only this one was watery. It was as if the water that had made up the shield was flowing up, defying gravity. The water drops slowly dissipated into nothingness the higher they got up, making it seem like liquid, silver coloured flames. There were two sharks on the shield, both circling each other, as if they were in a Yin Yang position, their eyes the little dots that made up the middle of the half-symbols. I had no idea where that shark-and-water idea had come from, but I knew that I would eventually know, because my true mother had given me the knowledge through the Rinnegan.

She was still living, apparently, and could give me knowledge when she rightfully wanted to.

My Susanoo shrunk in size after it had thrown Yamamoto away towards his own fiery Susanoo lookalike in order to become denser, to better protect myself. Though the wings of my Susanoo did not decrease in size. They were still large enough that when stretched they would reach the top of the mile high barrier. I didn't minimize the flow of chakra, though, meaning that I still put the same amount of chakra as the Susanoo had used as before. Yamamoto managed to right himself in mid air, but despite having righted himself he didn't manage to get a solid foothold, so he slid until his back was less than a foot from the white fired Susanoo. Yamamoto, however, stubbornly got up and held out his right hand. In his hand appeared a sword made purely out of white flames with light blue outlines to it.

Then he stabbed it into the air, not even bothering to close the distance between the two of us. A narrow column erupted from the sword, a white column of pure flame so hot that it made a wide ditch, burning everything that dared come close to it. The white column, outlined light blue just like the rest of the Captain Commander's Bankai flames, approached my Susanoo rapidly, and if I hadn't been channelling lightning chakra through my body's brain I wouldn't have been able to react.

Ducking to the left the fiery column penetrated my Susanoo, completely eviscerating the Susanoo's ribs and hit the barrier that was over a hundred feet away from me. The barrier visibly strained against the force of the immensely powerful beam of destruction and heat. That didn't mean that I didn't escape unscathed. My cheek and a bit of my dark blonde hair had been burned from the intense heat of the beam of white hot fire. But otherwise I escaped unhurt and fit for combat. Though it should be noted that my calm but serious expression did not change in the least, except that I got a lot more serious and much less calm.

That beam of literally white hot fire could have eviscerated me, seeing as my gift of omnipresence from the Gods Of The Realms still wasn't in effect. Did the Captain Commander wish me dead? I didn't think so, but that didn't mean that I wouldn't be dishing out some of my more lethal moves to show Yamamoto that he shouldn't pull something like that.

Yamamoto quickly stabbed into the empty air again. The sword was covered in reiryoku based white flames, covering the entire area with intense heat. Yet again, as the Captain Commander's sword reached the end of his range, an extremely hot ray of destruction and fire flowed out of the sword. It once again created a ditch, only this one was wider, deeper, and the ray itself was thicker, extending its reach by quite a few inches. The ditch approached me rapidly, destroying anything and everything in its wake.

I had a plan. Hopefully it would work, otherwise I would lose an arm. And I needed both my arms to perform hand seals, as I hadn't been trained in the art of the one handed seals yet. Something I planned on rectifying.

I brought up a hand with haste, and whispered, "Shinra Tensei." The whisper resounded beyond the roars of the flames and the Susanoo's screeching sound it suddenly made, being heard by even the audience outside the strongest barrier of the Kido corps.

The effect was immediate. The beam of fire and flames looked as if it was cut in half, being pushed back. It was as if the beam was solid. And as I discovered, it was. It was difficult to push back the beam of fiery flames, but eventually I settled on using wind natured chakra to simply cut the beam into pieces.

It worked. I charged forward, dismissing my Susanoo, seeing as at least one of the Captain Commander's attacks could penetrate my Susanoo's near perfect defence with relative ease. As I charged forward I willed my chakra to take form outside my body, performing a rotation of wind chakra that was not unlike the Hyuuga clan's Heavenly Spin technique. Something I should try at some point. In theory it was just pouring out chakra from each and every chakra pore on the body, and then spin on a dime. It was a relatively easy technique to perform, but it just required concentration, or pouring massive amounts of chakra into the technique. I was capable of both.

As I charged forward the pole of tangible fire seemed to be cut, falling down and eventually dissipating into nothingness.

I had a hundred feet of ground to cover, so I stepped my game up. I poured more and more chakra to my legs' muscles, and then I used the shunshin technique to appear right behind Yamamoto. Yamamoto seemed to realize that I was behind him, but before he could do anything I pressed a pressure point on his neck, making him collapse in extreme pain, causing a lapse of concentration. His Susanoo lookalike dissipated into the air, using whatever spiritual oxygen it could get before his Bankai – which curiously enough didn't include chain mail of any sort – burned up.

Yamamoto sat on his knees on the burned ground of the Sokyoku hill, writhing in all-consuming pain. The Captain Commander, he had effectively lost, seeing as I could have easily decapitated him or anything else, so I hastily pulled the skin above the same pressure point to ease his pain. The pain wouldn't immediately go away, but with some healing Kido, he would be fine. I nodded to myself as the Captain Commander lost consciousness.

Then the sheer epicness of what I just did hit me.

I just defeated the mother fucking Captain Commander of Soul Society, of Gotei thirteen, the one and only Shinigami to hold the position of Captain Commander for well over a thousand years, seeing as no Shinigami that had existed had been stronger than him.

If I had not come to realize the true nature of chakra, I would have jumped for joy and been visibly giddy with excitement.

But I was not. Instead, I just nodded to the stunned silent audience. I enhanced my voice with chakra, making it boom across the absolutely massive Sokyoku hill, reaching all the way to the audience. It was loud enough that it was as if I was standing right next to them. "Disable the barrier and heal your Captain Commander. I fear that if you do not heal him immediately," I hesitated. Pressure points. They were dangerous to the recipient if pressed hard enough and in a specific way. "He will die."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I am damn fucking proud of the battle, despite it being a little on the short side. Don't worry, though. I know that the Captain Commander, had he not been idle, would give Shinji Takuma a hard run for his money. If there'll be a next fight between them, he will learn his lesson and use Shunpo more often than not.

Anyway, thank you so fucking much for reading my story! I am fully dedicated to finish this story for the moment, and I can't wait to get to the different universes so that Shinji can/will kick some ass, badly! He is, after all, the Sage Of The Six Paths, and the Sage Of The Six Paths is arguably the strongest character in all of anime, discounting Dragon Ball, of course. I mean, he defeated the fucking Ten Tailed Beast, for crying out loud!

* * *

><p><em><strong>(*SPOILER ALERT! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED, DON'T READ FURTHER!*)<strong>_

Also, seen the newest chapter of Naruto? Chapter 568, I think it was. I didn't know that the Tailed Beasts had names. But it makes sense that they do. I mean, why wouldn't they? Despite being almost pure chakra constructs they're still living beings. And I totally get what Masashi Kishimoto-sama did with naming the Four Tailed Beast Son Goku, and his Jinchuuriki, called Roshi. Paying tribute to Dragon Ball, are you? But I don't blame him, to be honest. Dragon Ball is what made anime what it is today, what with the concept of inner power and whatnot, right? Also, the Nine Tailed Beast, the Nine Tailed Fox, whatever, is called Kurama. Who the fuck expected that? I sure as hell didn't. Also, I haven't seen Yu Yu Hakusho, because I simply don't want to. Therefore, I don't really get the reference that he made there with Yu Yu Hakusho. But hey, I don't blame him for naming the Tailed Beasts anything that can relate to other manga. I seriously don't. I see it as paying tribute.


	56. Quelling Suspicions

**Author's note:** The poll is still going, by the way!

* * *

><p>Captain Unohana had rushed to the Captain Commander when Captains Ukitake and Shunsui had disabled the barrier with putting their hands on it and putting some paper seals on it as well with their other hand. I didn't know the specifics, but I wasn't about to ask about it. They were entitled to their own secrets. That was all that was needed.<p>

Captain Unohana of the Fourth Division reached the downed Yamamoto. Yamamoto twitched because of phantom pains as Captain Unohana's hands glowed a healing green as her hands floated around the Captain Commander's body. After healing him and helping him stand up and reach for his sealed sword, as well as putting back on his Shinigami robes, the Captain of the Fourth Division turned to me with a heavy scowl.

Now, normally I would have pissed myself in fright. Normally. But I wasn't about to do that, seeing as that would do many things. One such thing was the complete humiliation that I would have to face, and another would be that I wouldn't be able to live the humiliation down, especially if Haku got word of it.

However, I was calm about such trivial things. I wasn't about to _actually_ piss myself in fright, despite Captain Unohana's scowl. I did, however, scratch the back of my neck and avert my eyes. That was the closest thing to fear I would experience for quite a while.

"What did you do to the Captain Commander?" she demanded, in her usual soft voice, only it had taken a tone for the worse, getting angry and all that.

I cocked my head to the left and rose an eyebrow, meeting Captain Unohana's gaze directly, not moving my eyes from the ominous look she gave me. And it was a truly terrifying look, had I still had my previous mindset. "I simply put severe and sudden pressure on a point on the back of his neck," I patiently told the Captain of the Fourth Division.

Captain Unohana's frown deepened. "That should be impossible," she said. "The spiritual body and toughness of said body should be able to withstand damage to the pressure points of the body. The human body and the body of a spiritual being are different," she finished, her frown deepening even further.

I calmly nodded, "While that may be true, the results cannot be argued. Apparently the human body's equivalent of pressure points are made into spiritual pressure points instead-"

I was rudely interrupted by a long and jagged sword that had fallen into disrepair being swung down to me. Hastily, I activated the Izanagi technique by channelling Yin-Yang chakra to my brain, weaving through three hand seals faster than the eye could see, Rabbit, Boar, Ram.

Just as the hands hit together the sword that had fallen into disrepair hit me, cutting through me from shoulder to hip, bifurcating me. The sword hit the ground, just as my upper torso slid slowly down the lower half of my torso.

Then, after a disappointed grunt from the Captain of the Eleventh Division, my corpse disappeared into nothingness.

I appeared again right behind Kenpachi Zaraki, as he looked at my disappeared corpse, wondering just what had happened.

I didn't want to fight, though. But if Kenpachi Zaraki had set his battle lusting eyes on me, then so be it. I would fight as long as Kenpachi wouldn't be going to kill anyone around us. I would fight him, not to prove anything, but to make him stop wanting to fight me.

I held out a hand in front of me, and in a shower of silver orbs and a crackle of sounds, a sword appeared in my hand. The sword was fairly nondescript, actually. The only thing noteworthy about the sword was its lack of a guard. Otherwise it looked fairly standard, with an all-black, long handle. The blade itself was straight, about three feet in length while the handle was about half a foot, its blunt edge a shining silver as well as the sharp edge of my blade.

I had used the Creation Of All Things once again.

I slowly turned around while saying, "Kenpachi Zaraki of the Eleventh Division, the Close Combat Division, if I am not mistaken. Am I correct?"

Kenpachi quickly turned around, his sword brandished in one of his hands. He wouldn't take me seriously. That, or he just wanted to die fighting. I wouldn't kill him, though. Unless I was willing to replace him, of course, but I wasn't willing to do so. He grinned, "I don't know how you survived that, but I don't care! If you could beat the old man, then you could give me the fight I want!" he yelled out the last part, and proceeded to swing his sword down at a calm me once again.

I held up a heavily chakra reinforced hand, even by my standards, and grabbed hold of the sword just before it reached my head. I enclosed my hand around the half broken sword. And with a flick of my wrist I broke it in half. "I will not fight you, Captain Kenpachi Zaraki. I do not wish to fight you." Kenpachi just stared at his now literally broken sword with amazement. He didn't know that one could break a Zanpakuto, much less a shinobi.

Then I turned around and made a sheath appear on my waist with the Creation Of All Things technique, and proceeded to put my sword in it. I should use the Creation Of All Things more often, seeing as it was probably the most useful technique to ever exist. Hell, the Tailed Beasts were created from that technique. That said something about the power of the technique.

Rabbit, Boar, Ram. "Release," I whispered. Alright, now that I had disabled the Izanagi technique, I would proceed to walk to the still shocked audience.

When I was in front of the crowd of select Shinigami, I swore I heard someone say 'Damn, that was awesome,' or something along those lines. But I didn't really care, though.

"Now, would someone care to escort me back to the house of which my fellow shinobi occupy?"

* * *

><p>Rukia and Renji both offered to escort me back to the house, almost immediately after they had overcome their shock that I had been able to defeat both the Captain Commander, Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, <em>and<em> the Captain of the Eleventh Division, Kenpachi Zaraki, both in a single blow. Well, technically in a single blow. Had I performed the pressure point trick earlier, I would have maybe won. And that was a very large 'maybe'.

They had talked about everything between the skies and the earth, or so the saying goes.

"How was your day when you woke from your coma, Shinji-san?" Rukia asked.

"It went relatively well, if you disregard the gang that had almost immediately tried to kill me, and the fact that Anko – who now calls herself Kinako after a type of dango, I believe – doesn't seem to remember me, neither does the child that we have had together," I calmly, kindly, yet sarcastically, answered, an easy smile playing around on my face. Apparently I couldn't completely get rid of my former personality. But that was alright. I wasn't about to force myself to stay as calm as possible under all situations anyway, so it was absolutely fine.

My reply seemed to have had the undesired effect of making both of my escorts uncomfortable.

I smiled gently at them both and shook my head. "It did allow me to acknowledge the fact that Anko Mitarashi, the woman I had talked so much about to you, was not the one for me anyway. She was not exactly my type of woman to begin with, so I believe. It is nothing you two need to worry yourselves about," I said, eviscerating any ill intent between the three of us. So to speak..

Saying that made Renji and Rukia both nod and ease their tense shoulders. "Alright, if you say so, Shinji-san," Rukia replied. She was smiling widely and with good intent towards me. I smiled back at her softly. It was nice to have people to rely on. That was certain, for sure.

We all three stopped in front of a familiar, two storey house. It was the house of which I lived in along with my fellow shinobi. I believed that telling them about the changes that had happened to me would be highly unnecessary and impractical, seeing as they would be disbelieving. Zabuza and Haku, and I believe Konan too, hardly believed the fact that I came from a Realm where their existence was but a figment of someone's imagination. They believed it after a bit of convincing, but they unquestionably still had their own doubts. They were entitled to them, so I believed. But if I told them that I was the spiritual son of Izanami no Mikoto and Izanagi no Mikoto, they would surely be quite hesitant to accept that. I, too, would have doubted it were it not for my own experience with my true mother. I wondered why she hadn't intervened earlier, but I wasn't about to complain. I was already godlike in combat and ninjutsu, and both the event of merging our Rinnegan and making me realize the true nature and purpose of chakra made me beyond godlike. It was inconvenient that I was that strong, but I believed that in the very near future I would put chakra restraining seals on my person to make sure that I wouldn't wipe the floor with each and every living – or dead, as the case may be – person.

I smiled at both of my friendly escorts and told them, "Goodbye, and may peace follow wherever you go."

Rukia and Renji looked at each other with a weirded out expression, but they both smiled at me awkwardly and waved me goodbye as they used Shunpo to disappear to wherever it was that they wanted to go.

My smile slipped from my calm face. It wasn't that I wasn't in a good mood or anything, – I had just beat two extremely strong Captains of Gotei thirteen, how could I not be in a good mood? – it was just that I didn't want to put too much strain on my facial muscles. Oh well, not smiling wasn't exactly the end of the world.

I turned towards the entrance and saw a royally pissed of trio of shinobi. Well, as pissed off as Haku and Konan could be, seeing as Haku was usually quite accepting, and Konan loved me, trusted me and because she was usually calm as well. But that didn't mean they weren't angry or anything.

I sighed. "Alright, what have I done?"

* * *

><p>Apparently, I hadn't done anything except forgetting to tell them where I had been. Which was easily rectified.<p>

We sat down by the table, Haku having already made green tea for the four of us. I took a slight sip from the delicious tea. I let the hot tea stay in my mouth for a little while so that I could get as much of the taste as possible, right before I swallowed the tea. I let out a content sigh from the taste. I didn't know what it was that Haku did to make the green tea delicious, he was just able to do that. If he had opened a tea shop I would be confident that he would be practically swimming in riches.

"Alright, so where have you been, Takuma?" Zabuza bluntly asked, with his usual voice cutting through the silence after my content sigh like a scalpel cutting through plastic.

I kept my calm expression on my face, and replied airily. "Oh, just been fighting the Captain Commander in an all out spar. Nothing much," I said. I closed my eyes and took another sip from the magnificent green tea. Seriously, I had to get to know what Haku did to make the tea _that_ delicious.

One. Wait for it...

Two. Wait for it...

Thr- "What?"

Oh, well, that was earlier by twenty three milliseconds. Wasn't expecting that. Granted, only Momochi said anything. Konan just stared at me with surprised and widened eyes, while Haku was doing quite the good imitation of a gold fish out of the water.

"How could you stand against the Captain Commander? From what little I have heard he's the greatest Shinigami to have lived yet!" Zabuza had calmed down after his little tirade, but I wasn't blaming him. Standing up against the Captain Commander in combat, especially when said Captain Commander had activated Bankai to try and defeat a very persistent opponent, was difficult to say the very least. Only Ichigo Kurosaki would be able to stand a chance against him, and that was after completing Jinzen. Why Jinzen was the only method to communicating with one's Zanpakuto spirit was beyond me. But I wasn't exactly the most avid Bleach fan, so perhaps there were other methods of communicating with one's Zanpakuto spirit. I wouldn't know.

"Easy," I said, after swallowing the tea. I prepared myself to take one more sip. Seriously, what did Haku do to make the tea so extraordinary? I would _have_ to ask him. "I went full out as well."

Konan frowned at that. "Shinji," she said firmly. "I am not the best chakra sensor in existence, and from my knowledge, neither are Haku-san or Zabuza-san, but," she hesitated. "Have your chakra levels grown? And why are you suddenly so calm about everything? Is something wrong, Shinji?" She leaned slightly forward in concern,

I smiled softly at Konan's concern. Perhaps it would do good to explain to them the complications of the multi-universe, and the fact that I was the spiritual son of Izanami no Mikoto and Izanagi no Mikoto, the one whose birth captured the attention of the God Of The Realms. Perhaps it would be best. But what would the repercussions be? There could be the fact that they would abandon me. It would be a terrible blow to me if Konan would abandon me. But telling them the truth was perhaps the best option to make.

So I told them. "Are you aware of the legends of Izanami no Mikoto and Izanagi no Mikoto?"

They all three nodded, somewhat hesitant.

I nodded back at them. "Do you want the blunt version or the long drawn version?" I asked, with a somewhat smug smirk on my face.

Zabuza immediately responded. "The short one, thank you very much."

I chuckled good naturedly. "Very well. I am the spiritual son of Izanami and Izanagi."

One.

Two.

Three.

Silence. Well, that was unexpected. Maybe-

"What?" Alright, so it was delayed for about a second or so. And yet again, Konan's eyes widened in surprise, Haku gasped this time and brought her – _his_! – hands to cover his mouth, while Zabuza was the one to yell out loudly. "What the fuck do you mean, you're the-"

I calmly waited until Zabuza's tirade was done. He complained and shouted, or growled, more like. But all he did was to put strain on his vocal chords. I wouldn't be listening to his growls until they stopped being nonsensical. I took another sip from the appetizing green tea, letting it stay in my mouth for a while before swallowing it.

I interrupted Zabuza mid-growl, "Are you quite finished yet?" I took another sip from the surprisingly tasty tea. After swallowing the tea I looked Zabuza dead in the eye. "If you keep barking like that I won't be able to answer you, you know," I said, seriousness damn near dripping from my voice. I wasn't angry at Zabuza; he had every right to question my statement of facts as confusing and mind boggling as me being the son of two legendary Gods, spiritually speaking.

Zabuza growled again. "Let's take this outside. Usual sparring place."

I nodded in agreement after taking a sip of the more than wonderful tea.

* * *

><p>"This time we'll even the odds," Zabuza said angrily. He, like I had stated before, had every right to do what he did, to be angry. "Techniques are allowed, but you will seal off ninety nine percent of your chakra. That should give you Kage level chakra, right?"<p>

I nodded in confirmation, sat down on the grass and used Yin-Yang natured chakra to make a scroll, an ink pot and a brush appear in a shower of silver orbs. I didn't see him, but I could damn well feel the surprise rolling off Zabuza. But he quickly and wisely decided to not voice his thoughts. I would have answered him truthfully, of course, had he asked. I then proceeded to write down complex seals, copying them down on the created scroll from memory. To kill two birds with one stone – or so the saying goes, because I would never try to murder birds needlessly – I made the seal in such a way that I would be able to activate it so that I could release the seal one percent at a time, making sure that my reserves were Kage level no matter what. Under only the most dire of circumstances would I need to release a single percent, seeing as one percent was easily well over Kage level. If I had released all the levels, then it would be either to prove myself to someone who politely, or otherwise, decided to witness my full power.

I nodded to myself. It was needed, not to make sure that I would enjoy my battles, but because I wanted to prove the futility of fighting against me, and in turn, against the incarnation of peace. I didn't, though, have any illusions or delusions of peace. It would eventually be shattered. But I would make sure that everyone would either fear the concept of war too much, or love the concept of peace too much, to break the true peace that would ensue eventually.

I finished the seal work quickly, well after a half an hour, and I had impressed even myself, despite not showing it externally, due to my calmness. In the middle of the seal work was a single symbol. The symbol for 'limitation'. It was surrounded by ninety eight other symbols that could be considered synonyms of the word, or something similar to the word, such as the symbol for 'reduction', 'restraint' and 'inhibition'.

Then, once again, I made my chakra take the nature of Yin and Yang, creating a scalpel from thin air in a shower of silver sparks, the colour of my chakra being silver and all. I carefully cut the edge of the seal off. Then I proceeded to channel chakra through the paper and ink itself. The piece of the scroll faded slowly away from existence, only showing itself on my back, the large symbol for 'limitation' tattooed to the upper part of my back, and underneath it were several dozens of symbols. I knew that they would glow, probably silver, should I activate them. It would proceed from the bottom up, the last symbol being the largest, 'limitation'.

Then I willed the scalpel and the scroll on the ground to disappear with my Yin-Yang natured chakra. And surprisingly, both the scroll on the ground as well as the scalpel disappeared in a show of silver orbs floating skywards. It was curious, the shower of silver orbs, and why it did what it did, but I believed that with the spectacle of silver it would be more apparent when I used the Creation Of All Things. What a useful technique. I would totally use it more often as a result.

I felt my chakra reserves plummet down to twice what would be considered Kage level. Probably at the level of what Nagato had. As I knew from the knowledge the merged Rinnegan had given me, while my Chibaku Tensei was twice the size of Nagato's when he was exhausted, I was equally exhausted at that point. I had used several thousand of shadow clones previously, as well as had them train for several techniques, sometimes even at the same time. So that was one of the reasons my Chibaku Tensei was less than what I thought it to be. I didn't realize the fact that I had used the shadow clone technique, seeing as I was so used to using it every day for a whole year and a half.

"Now," I said calmly, almost apathetically, completely ignoring the feeling of emptiness and vulnerability from the lack of Tailed Beast level chakra. My tone of voice did sound impassive, but Zabuza hopefully knew me better than that. "Let us begin sparring. Let us remember our rules."

"No killing intent," Zabuza said, as if reading from a text book. He was always annoyed with the retelling of each of our own set rules we had created to make sure no ill intent would be between us. "Unless we fake it, of course."

I smiled with mirth. Or with as much mirth as possible while still maintaining a calm front. How typical of Zabuza to say something like that. "No killing or debilitating each other," I said.

Zabuza huffed, "No– oh screw this!" he yelled the last part out, made a single handed seal with his hand, took out his Executioner's Blade with the other, and a thick mist enveloped the entire clearing we had come to call our usual sparring ground.

What we both knew, having seen them out of the corner of our eyes, was that we had an audience of well over a dozen Shinigami and two shinobi.

"Time to begin, yes?" I asked politely. I drew my black handled sword and held it casually with my right hand hand. If my thoughts on the upcoming battle would be correct then it would begin with swords, then I'd use Shinra Tensei to blast away the entire mist, then it'd be a battle of ninjutsu–

I quickly brought up my sword to my right, holding the sword with both my hands. I was only channelling a minuscule amount of chakra through my body, because my reserves had dropped from the Tailed Beast level chakra amount and potency to twice the Kage level chakra reserves and potency. Though it would be more than enough to defeat Zabuza Momochi, it would still prove to be somewhat a challenge, seeing as Zabuza was quite the opponent and expert at silent killing. Of course, he wouldn't _actually_ cut my throat or jugular, but you would never know.

I felt the Executioner's Sword pummel once into my own created sword. It was time to test the quality of the sword. Since I was merely channelling a small amount of chakra through my body I flew well over fifty feet to my left. I felt myself crashing into a tree. Hastily, I created a shadow clone in front of me and the real me ran to the left. I looked behind me to only see thick fog. But I heard Zabuza's blade pierce the shadow clone's stomach. I received the shadow clone's memories, and sure enough, the shadow clone had been pierced in the stomach by the Executioner's Blade. If I didn't know better, I would have thought that Zabuza attempted to actually hurt me.

I jumped high into the air, just enough to dodge a high horizontal swing with the Executioner's Blade. Again, if I didn't know any better, I would have thought that Zabuza was aiming to kill me. But I knew he had the strength to stop the Executioner's Blade, despite it being as heavy as a ton of weights.

"Goddammit, stay still so I can cut you up!" Zabuza growled, as I dodged yet another swing. It was vertical, and I had sidestepped it.

Well, since he wanted me to stand while getting cut up, then so be it.

I jumped backwards and sheathed my sword. "Alright. Come!" I said loudly, and spread my arms widely to my sides.

Zabuza grinned, not that I could see it, and swung horizontally at me. I put my hands together to form three hand seals, while pouring Yin and Yang chakra through my entire body. Rabbit, Boar, Ram.

Zabuza's gigantic blade penetrated my throat and cut my entire head off.

Zabuza grinned maliciously.

I appeared right behind him, my back turned to him, frowning. Zabuza hadn't detected me. He probably thought that it was funny that I had died, for some reason. What reasons did he have to try and kill me? There could be the fact that he didn't believe in the explanation that I was the spiritual son of Izanami and Izanagi, and that he had a grudge against anyone and everyone who believed in something as trivial as Gods. Even more if they believed in the multi-universe theory I had come up with not three days ago.

I sighed internally, not willing to let it come externally, as I would lose the jump on him. What other reason did he have? I had to find out and see if I could do anything to rectify his mistakes. He had made plenty of mistakes – everyone had – and I was willing to forgive him for trying to kill me, if he just acknowledged that it was a mistake to try and murder me.

I turned around, just as I heard Zabuza laugh lowly, with a maniacal tone in his voice. He didn't want to alert anyone of his attempt to kill me. Well, granted, he had murdered me. In a sense. He just killed a me that had been in another place while the true me was in another. Or something along those lines.

Finally the corpse that Zabuza had cut its head off of completely disappeared. Zabuza hadn't noticed, as he was too caught up in my apparent death.

"Look down, Momochi," my voice resounded throughout the clearing, the source of my voice not identifiable. It even went as far as going up to the audience of both Shinigami and shinobi. I had resorted to use his surname, simply because he was apparently dead set on murdering me. Zabuza immediately looked down in extreme surprise at my voice cutting through the quiet laughter of Zabuza's. He took a step back and hoisted his Executioner's Blade up with both of his hands. I noticed that he was abnormally tense, his shoulders rigid, his neck stiff and his legs prepared to jump at a moment's notice. He was extraordinarily taut, not prepared for my getting back up. Apparently he had planned for my weakness. He had planned it in such a way that I would limit myself so that I'd be easier to kill. He hadn't exactly expected the technique whose namesake came from my spiritual father, Izanagi. Hell, he didn't even know what that technique was, and to be honest, I believed that no one should know that I could cheat death with a simple technique. The audience at my battle with the Captain Commander of Gotei thirteen didn't know that the technique was called Izanagi. They probably thought it was some kind of after image instead of an actual technique. But I didn't blame them for not knowing. It was to be my trump card in the future.

I tapped Zabuza on his left shoulder with my right hand.

The strangely murderous Zabuza swung his sword with a single arm behind him, bifurcating me for the second time that day. It was the third time I had to use Izanagi that day, and hopefully I wouldn't have to again.

Once again, I appeared, only this time my previous body faded into non-existence almost immediately, something that did not go unnoticed by Zabuza. He was scared at that moment. If I could cheat death, then what was to say I wouldn't kill off Zabuza for what he had just tried at?

But no, I wouldn't kill him.

This time I appeared again in front of him. He looked at me with very wide eyes, and I could practically hear his heart beat increase dramatically.

However, I just stood there, looking directly at his eyes with a calm exterior and interior. I was not envious of Zabuza's talents in swordsmanship, nor at his talents in hand to hand combat. I had techniques that would make any shinobi green with envy. One of those was the technique that was still in effect.

Which made me stop channelling Yin and Yang chakra through my body, effectively stopping the technique.

I began to make chakra flow from my brain to the scared Zabuza's own.

I entered his inner world.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I am proud of this story! :D

Anyway, what else can I say? The ending of this chapter is 'meh', in the words of a very funny and faithful reviewer, LuckyShadowWolf, of whom I'm extremely grateful for.

I also want to thank EVA-Saiyajin for both reviewing since chapter 17! And for actually giving me some criticism!

And that is not to diminish anyone else! I want to thank you all for reviewing! Especially Alpenwolf, nartog, yukicrewger2 (I think it was, and oddly enough, there's no red squiggly line underneath that name), OmegaHouse, Shodaime Fungukage, otodog, sntsbueno, OrionRedde, Deadzeppelin, and all the anonymous reviewers that might review in the future, as well as those that _have_ reviewed! While I wish I could have more reviewers and views, wouldn't all authors wish for that? :D

I wish you all had a merry Christmas (or Happy Hanukkah. Or whatever it is you had) and I wish you all a HAPPY FUCKING NEW YEAR! WUHUUUH! :D


	57. The Controller Of The Demonic Swordsman

**Author's note:** The poll is still open!

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><p>I opened my eyes, and sure enough, I saw a thick, and strangely enough, red mist enveloping the entire area I was in. Strange, that. I looked around, and towards the ground, even the sky. Everything was covered in the peculiar red mist. I couldn't even see a hand in front of me when I brought one up in front of me.<p>

"Begone!" I shouted to the red mist. I did sound angry, but truth was, I wanted to save a friend. So yes, I was angry, but rather at whatever it was that corrupted Zabuza. My shout had the desired result. The blood red mist cleared immediately, showing a vast expanse of emptiness. The ground was made out of white and glossy marble, and the sky was baby blue in colour, white, and curiously enough, purple clouds dotting the otherwise clear sky.

And what met my gaze was a very interesting sight.

On a bronze pedestal was Zabuza Momochi. He was lying down, had his eyes closed. He was clearly unconscious.

But that wasn't wasn't the only thing that drew my attention, no.

There, in his red armoured, long and black haired, Sharingan eyed, powerful glory was Madara Uchiha. He had his arms crossed. He was looking straight at me with his Sharingan, which began to morph into his own Mangekyo Sharingan. And surprisingly enough, it didn't stop transforming.

It became the Rinnegan, morphing so that he was glaring at me with cold, calculating eyes, eyes that had been through hell thrice over and won each time. The eyes that were conquering, the eyes that were malicious in intent, but in the end, simply wanted to live in true, eternal peace.

I frowned heavily, and oddly enough, with not a trace of ill intent marring my voice. "I didn't expect you to still live, to have survived that blow to your chest," I paused slightly. It was good to see that I still had a penchant for the dramatic. That meant that I hadn't completely lost myself in the event of merging my spiritual mother's Rinnegan and my own, which in turn had changed my personality to a certain degree, making me considerably calmer than before, more accepting if anything. "Madara Uchiha."

Said man's glare intensified. He was without a doubt angry at me for completely eviscerating him in combat as quickly as I had. He hadn't been able to use all of his abilities anyway, so it wasn't much of a surprise, really. "And I didn't expect you to still live, but I had taken precautions to make sure that if you had, you would die and stay dead," Madara murmured. It was so low that if I hadn't focused on him I wouldn't have heard it.

He would pay for all the pain he had caused.

But first.

"I forgive you for what you've done," I said. I felt as if it were necessary to forgive Madara Uchiha for what he had done. He felt it was the only way to gain true peace. By becoming the Jinchuuriki of the Ten Tailed Beast to get enough chakra to use the Infinite Tsukiyomi, to make sure that people wouldn't do anything unless Madara willed it to happen. It was understandable, but it would be more of a tyrant's, a dictator's, world than a truly peaceful and free world. But freedom and peace at the same time were usually not obtainable.

Unless one had omnipresence, power to back their words and presence, and the will to use that power for the greater good.

And I had all those three. Or I would have all three, at least, speaking of omnipresence.

Madara's glare wavered, replaced by a look of carefully controlled shock. I didn't know that one could control shock, much less carefully, but Madara managed to pull it off. "What are you saying, Shinji Takuma? You," he hesitated saying what he had on his mind, blinking once in surprise. "Forgive me?"

Then he scoffed quite loudly. "Right. And I am the Sage Of The Six Paths. That's a lie and you know it," Madara angrily, and loudly, declared. He glared at me his killing intent spiking.

I sighed quite heavily. Forgiving someone was the first step to peace. The second was beating the one you had forgiven into submission so that they could see the futility in trying to going against true peace. Unless they agreed to ally themselves with me, that is.

But that didn't mean I would enjoy beating Madara around. My personality had truly changed drastically since the merging. And my personality was more forgiving than before. Thus I could forgive Madara for having a hand in killing Anko and my child. It was alright now. I could see that his hand was in it because he wanted to save all of humankind. If it took a sacrifice of a woman and a child, then so be it. That merely told me that he was willing to sacrifice something innocent for the greater good of mankind. That truly spoke volumes of his character and his dedication to real peace.

I understood him. I could see where he was coming from. But he was misguided. There would always be someone truly powerful to break free from the illusion of Infinite Tsukiyomi. And it wasn't exactly everlasting to begin with. The chakra of the Ten Tailed Beast, while truly enormous beyond any real comprehension, would eventually run out, despite its enormity.

I shook my head. "No, Madara Uchiha. I truly do forgive you for what you have done. While what you have done has made many to know true pain, it also makes people realize how horrible losing someone close to oneself is. Despite the pain you have caused, I am willing to forgive you," I said calmly. I was trying to convince him to stand down, simply because getting Madara Uchiha on my side would truly be a wise decision, as well as a good move. He wasn't evil, not to begin with. He just did what he thought was right. He was merely a misguided person.

Madara's eyes narrowed dangerously. He didn't say anything for a while. Then he opened his mouth, his eyes still calculating and narrowed. "What is the catch?" he asked quietly. Good. He was thinking my unspoken offer of alliance to me over. That was very good indeed.

I shook my head again. "Why do you believe there's a catch-"

I was ever so rudely interrupted by a vast, and very real, killing intent streaming from Madara Uchiha, one that was so large and vicious – when compared to the standard Kage level shinobi – that it dwarfed anything that I had experienced before by a relatively large amount. "What," he said slowly, narrowing his Rinnegan eyes dangerously, his voice practically dripping with malicious intent. "Is," he growled, as he took a slow and threatening step forward. "The," he muttered seriously, taking another menacing step forward. "Catch?" he finished, stopping well over six yards away from me. It was a distance that could easily be cleared by either of us within an instant. His killing intent spiked before lowering again to the previous, yet still vastly superior, amount.

I slightly tilted my head to the right. Slowly and deliberately I brought my hands up, to signify that I wasn't going to do anything remotely harmful to him. "The catch is simple, if you so desire a catch to exist. I wish for you to ally yourself with me."

I saw Madara tense his crossed arms. Before he could open his mouth I said something. "Emphasis on _ally_, Madara Uchiha. I won't order you around. I will _ask_ you if you want to do something that I want you to do. You will have every right to deny whatever request I have for you. Likewise, you may request me to do anything you want me to do. _That_ is my only 'catch'," I told Madara calmly. It wouldn't do to have a killing intent match, now, would it? No. No it wouldn't. I would initiate a fight of killing intents, had I still not merged with my spiritual mother's Rinnegan.

My words apparently shocked Madara into silence. He stood there, with his arms firmly crossed. His legs were shoulder width apart. Ready to activate Susanoo in the blink of an eye. He looked ready to fight with all his strength. And his eyes were still narrowed ominously, like he was sceptical of my intentions. I wasn't about to blame him either for suspecting me. He was, after all, one of the most powerful shinobi that had existed, overlooking the Sage Of The Six Paths, Hashirama Senju, and perhaps Hiruzen Sarutobi and Minato Namikaze. And perhaps the Third Raikage.

But he wouldn't be needing to use the Susanoo. Or any technique, for that matter. I would take the peaceful approach to make sure Madara wasn't going to harm anyone from then on. It was the best option. But of course, I didn't expect Madara to comply to my offer immediately. So beating him in combat would be necessary before he would accept it, my offer.

Madara's Rinnegan narrowed even more, turning them into narrow slits. "What is your game, Shinji Takuma?" he hesitantly asked. Well, at least he used my full name again. He was without a doubt a powerful shinobi. But I was more powerful than him. At least when it came to pure skill in ninjutsu, genjutsu and the art of sealing. When it came to taijutsu, he had much, much more experience under his belt. He was also much more skilled at hand to hand combat than I was. And he would stay that way.

I sighed slightly. It wouldn't do to lie, or beat around the bush, with Madara, seeing as he was much more experienced than I was. He was basically a mind reader, what with his skill with his own Sharingan and Mangekyo Sharingan. He wasn't good at using the Rinnegan, at least not yet. I intended to train him in the arts of the Rinnegan, and perhaps I would be able to grant him some more power in order to make him remain my ally, should he accept my offer, of course. "My game is very simple, Madara Uchiha. I want the same goal as you. World peace. True peace. Eternal peace. But," I spoke up, interrupting Madara. He had opened his mouth to say something. It would undoubtedly be something along the lines of trying to convince me that his Eye Of The Moon Plan was the only way to restore and maintain the peace of which he wanted, of which he desired. Of which he thought was the only way to gain true, eternal peace. I continued, "Your Eye Of The Moon Plan–"

I was oh so rudely interrupted by Madara, who took another step forward. It was a small step, but his killing intent did spike severely. "How do you know of my plan? Who," he tightened his arms around his chest. "Or what, are you?" he demanded to know.

I did not change my expression. I did not change my stance, not my body language, nothing. I did not seem nervous or otherwise bothered by Madara interrupting me. On the inside I was calm, resolute, and unmoving. I was stalwart in my hope that Madara could be changed, whether it was before or after I had to beat the sense into him, I didn't know. But I firmly believed that he could change for the better, despite what he had done. Despite what he did, and despite what he thought he would do in the future. I didn't 'think' that he could change, I _knew_ he could change.

I decided to answer him before he lost his temper. "Everything I know is because of someone else's actions. You might not believe me if I tell you. But I have already told several other people. I believe another would be beneficial, especially one as powerful as you," I said, tilting my head forwards in respect to Madara's power. He didn't buy it, though. He didn't acknowledge my respect. But that was quite alright. He would, sooner or later. I had become a patient man, and I would be damned before I would become impatient once again. I didn't exactly like being impatient. It was disgusting and hypocritical to be impatient.

I decided to explain to him the multi-universe theory I had come up with. "Are you familiar with the multi-universe theory?" I held up a hand before Madara could answer. "Don't answer that, because I know you don't. Most shinobi are too busy surviving than trying to figure out how they came to being. Now, what the multi-universe theory is, is–" and then I began to explain to him the multi-universe theory. How with each possible thought a universe – or Realm, as the case may be, what with my recent discovery of my heritage and godly ancestry – would be created. Sure, Madara looked highly sceptical at my claims of the multi-universe, or Realm, but he didn't complain. He just stood stock still and listened patiently at me. Or angrily, I didn't mind whether or not he would listen to reasonable theories or not.

After I finished explaining the multi-universe, or Realm, theory, Madara sighed through his nose, not breaking eye contact with me at all. "And what, pray tell, has that to do with you knowing the Eye Of The Moon Plan, Shinji Takuma?"

I nodded at him in response and respect. "I come from one of those universes. Perhaps it is the main universe where all universes originally hail from, I do not know, but I come from that universe. In that universe, this," I spread my arms around, not caring that I was in Zabuza's inner world. "Is all a manga. The universe where you, Zabuza, Haku, Konan-chan, Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, your brother, Izuna Uchiha, or any other person that you know of that comes from there, is all based on a manga series called 'Naruto', the main character of that manga being 'Naruto Uzumaki', surprise surprise." I did notice that Madara's eyes widened considerably. He was obviously surprised at the statement that his life was all based on a manga. "The manga is all thought out by a man who goes by the name of 'Masashi Kishimoto'. Remember, the more that is built upon the thought that created the universe to begin with, the more developed that universe will be. That means that he still is building upon that thought, because the last time I read the manga series, Tobi," at hearing that name, Madara's eyes widened once more. He without a doubt thought, 'How could he know _him_? His identity is supposed to be a secret to any and all!', or something along those lines. I continued, "Had just collided head on with Naruto Uzumaki, who happened to be in something called 'Kyuubi Chakra Mode'." That was a half truth. With the knowledge I had suddenly gained from the Rinnegan, I knew that Naruto had just been swallowed up by Son Goku, or as he was better known as, the Four Tailed Beast, and gone inside his mind. The knowledge provided by my mother did inwardly shock me, though. So Kurama was the name of the Nine Tailed Beast? I wondered what the other Tailed Beasts' names were. But perhaps my mother would grant me the knowledge as the chapters get released by Masashi Kishimoto-sama. Or something along those lines. I wouldn't question my mother's decision for a slow update on the story of Naruto. She was, after all, my mother in all but flesh and blood.

Madara broke eye contact with me and looked down on the white marble ground between the two of us in thought. "He is the Nine Tailed Beast's Jinchuuriki, isn't he?" he asked.

Curiously enough, he sounded hesitant, as if he didn't want the answer. I nodded in confirmation, however, despite his lack of comfortability with the subject of Naruto Uzumaki's Jinchuuriki status. "Yes. He is. His parents died when Tobi, or you. I don't know yet," I had closed my eyes and had shrugged, so I missed the brief tensing of muscles in Madara's body. I continued after opening my eyes to see an impassive Madara Uchiha. "Decided to release the Nine Tailed Beast from Naruto's mother's, Kushina Uzumaki's, body." I had said all that with an unfeeling and calm tone in my voice that could, and would, send chills down any man's spine.

Then I smirked smugly – or as smugly as I could with my personality change – as if I knew something Madara didn't. Madara saw that, and narrowed his eyes. He wasn't glad that I knew something he didn't. "By the way, Madara Uchiha, you have made a grave mistake, assuming that the Tailed Beasts are just creatures, animals, savages, without any identity. Do you know why they destroy humanity at every corner? It is not because it's their instincts. It's not because they're naturally destructive. It's not because it's what drives them. There's actually a very simply answer to that. They have been used as tools for humanity for far too long for their liking. They have been used. They are actually creatures with feelings as well, just like us humans. We have no right to say that they are undeserving to live. That they exist just to be used as tools for humanity. Just because we have superior strength when it comes to wills doesn't mean that we should be confining the Tailed Beasts for our benefit. They are creatures of sapience and feelings, just like you and me. They can have superiority complexes, inferiority complexes, messiah complexes. They can be self obsessed. They can have religions. They can believe in something. They can choose to follow humans. They can choose to love. They can choose to hate. They can choose to adore. They can choose to be scared, nervous, happy, sad, and whatever emotion you can think of. They can choose whatever they want. Just like us humans. Just because we _might_ have superior abilities in some cases doesn't mean we can control them. Just because we _might_ have something better than them doesn't mean that we should be sealing them into humans on a whim. We have no rights to do so to them. They are just as living as you and I."

I ended my little speech with spreading my arms to my sides and say loudly and proudly, "They have feelings. Just like you and I. They have names. Just like you and I."

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><p><strong>Author's note: <strong>I am damn proud of that little speech at the end. I believe that the Tailed Beasts are not actual _beasts_, they're just misunderstood creatures. They have sapience. They have intelligence. Sure, they might be a little more arrogant than some humans, but so are humans in general. We humans could, and would, control them for power. We are truly disgusting, I think. Don't you agree? The very essence of humanity is greed, envy, pride, lust, gluttony, sloth and wrath. Greed, in that we want the power of the Tailed Beasts. Envy, in that we are jealous of the power of the Tailed Beasts and want it for ourselves. Pride, in that we believe ourselves to be better than the Tailed Beasts because of some ability that makes us able to control them, or something like that. Lust, in that we are lusting for the power of the Tailed Beasts, wanting it, craving it for ourselves. Gluttony, in that once we have the power of the Tailed Beasts, we want more of them to have more power, more and more and more and more. Sloth, in that once we have the power of the Tailed Beasts, we want to kick back and relax, thinking that no one will dare attack us once we have a Tailed Beast or two. Wrath, in that if the Tailed Beasts refuse to cooperate, we will induce them more pain than most should experience.

What I'm trying to say is that humans are disgusting creatures, and I wish that we would be able to nobly and proudly say that we are fighting against the seven sins. But no~, no one wants to admit that they are the incarnation of the seven sins! I admit, I am prideful, I am slothful (wow, that's actually a word), I can be green with envy, I lust after women (I'm a guy for those who haven't realized that yet! xD), power and money, I can be wrathful (that's also a word!), I can eat and want more and more and more (gluttony and greed, respectively). I would be the first to admit that I am disgusting to the bone. But I would also be the first to admit that I want to fight against those seven sins of humanity.

But I'm rambling. How are your thoughts for this chapter? I've been especially proud of the recent chapters.

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><p><em><strong>SPOILER ALERT! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED THEN DO NOT READ ON! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!<strong>_

For those who want to know, it'll be a little out of the battle in fake Karakura town when I will then, and only then divert to other universes. Bleach will not reappear again, unless you count Tia Harribel as a reappearance of Bleach.

_**SPOILER DONE! I'LL REPEAT, DO NOT READ WHAT'S ABOVE IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED OF THE FUTURE OF THIS PIECE OF FAN MADE LITERATURE! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!**_

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><p>That is all. :D<p> 


	58. Dance Of Battle

**Author's note:** The poll is still going! So far twenty six people have voted in it. That's not enough. Please vote. I beg of you! Please vote in it if you haven't! D:

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><p>Madara tensed his arms, bending his legs slightly. He was prepared to jump at a moment's notice, should it be needed. Hopefully it wouldn't be. "You cannot be serious," Madara said, and glared at me, spiking his killing intent once again. "Tailed Beasts have been created by the Sage Of The Six Paths out of the Ten Tailed Beast's chakra. They have been created for the sole purpose to serve humanity!"<p>

I sighed. Madara was truly deluded in his path that was shrouded in darkness. I would be the one to set that darkness alight, to make it vanish, to make Madara see the light once more. I would have to make him know that I would never intend to _control_ him. At no instance would I ever control him, at least directly. But no, I did not _want_ to control him, despite the tempting offer. I had other things to do than to give in to temptation. "Look, Madara," I referred to him in a familiar manner to make sure that I truly meant no harm to him. At all. "I don't mind that you do not understand the complexities that is the Tailed Beasts." I proceeded to look Madara dead in the eyes. "They _do_ have names. For example, the Four Tailed Beast's name is Son Goku. And your favourite pet, the Nine Tailed Beast, has a name as well. Kurama is that name. Since you, along with everyone else other than Naruto Uzumaki, never tried to befriend any of the Tailed Beasts. But that doesn't mean it's your fault, though. You just didn't think that a Tailed Beast had been named, much less by the Sage Of The Six Paths himself," I finished calmly. It wouldn't do to get angry at Madara anyway, so it was fine to not do anything to harm him indeed.

Madara frowned at my lack of a proper suffix or honorific to his name, as well as the familiarity of which I referred to him as. But he didn't shoot a critical remark at me. Instead, he chose to say something that, if I had not had the merged Rinnegan, would have surprised me. "Let's say that I agree to ally with you. What do you gain from it, and in turn, what do I gain from the alliance between the two of us?" he asked. He did have a polite tone to his voice, but it was angry and frustrated as well, as if I had been the source of his frustration, but could only be removed if faced with reason.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "Simple, really. You gain a proper sparring partner in ninjutsu and genjutsu, one that can actually beat you in both parts if you have even a tiny lapse of concentration. I gain another confidant, another ally that can fight alongside," I saw Madara about to protest to what I had said. I broke him off before he could say anything with his angrier than usual vocal chords. "Emphasis on _alongside_ me in battle. I will protect your back if you protect mine. I will fight for your cause with my very life if you choose to even defend my own cause. We both have similar causes – world peace – so I believe that we should both team up. No one can stand in the way to true peace if we do indeed form an alliance. Not the Gotei thirteen, not mages, not vampires, not meisters and weapons, not Claymores, not zombies, not maniacs with guns, not the supposed messengers of the alleged 'God', not any exorcist, not black suited people with supernatural strength, stamina and speed, not even people with supposedly invisible arms will be able to stand in the way to true, eternal, everlasting, real peace. All I ask – _ask_ – of you is that you ally yourself with me, become basically my right hand while I become yours. We are both equals. I might have more chakra than you, but you have skills and a technique library that even _I_ am jealous of."

Madara smirked dreamily. He without a doubt thought it was a very tempting offer that I had given him. But then the smirk vanished into an expression marred with confusion. "What do you mean, 'mages', 'vampires', 'meisters and weapons', 'Claymores', 'zombies', 'maniacs with guns', 'messengers from God', 'exorcists', 'black suited people with supernatural abilities', and these people with invisible arms?" Madara frowned. "I don't recognize what a 'mage' is, neither what a 'vampire' is, 'meisters', 'Claymores', 'zombies', and 'guns' are. What are they, if you would kindly answer me."

Had I not had a recent personality change I would be severely surprised by Madara's perceptiveness and memory. I mean, he remembered even the order of which I said those things in. That takes quite a good memory. But I couldn't completely hide my surprise. My eyebrows rose by half an inch. Then I smiled at Madara, and answered him. "You remember the multi-universe theory I have explained to you, yes?"

Madara cocked his head backwards in remembrance. He remembered my multi-universe theory, and then began to ask, "So these things that you mentioned, 'mages', 'vampires', 'meisters', 'Claymores', 'zombies', 'guns', 'messengers from God', 'exorcists', 'black suited people', and people with supposedly invisible arms. They are all from manga in your original universe?"

Wow, I did not expect him to catch on so quickly. Once again my eyebrows rose by half an inch. Then I brought them down and nodded in confirmation. "Indeed. They are all from manga that I liked very much. These 'mages' are from a manga called 'Fairy Tail', where ten percent of the humanity there are capable of supernatural feats that might or might not break the laws of physics. 'Vampires' are literally bloodthirsty creatures of the night, they prowl the streets at the dead of night, searching for human prey to drain dry of blood. Then the 'meisters and weapons'. That's a complicated matter. They both take human form, but have something called 'soul wavelength' to use for their attacks. Weapons can take form of, surprise surprise, weapons of any form, be it scythes, 'guns', which I will explain what is later, or even lamps, which surprised me too, by the way. 'Claymores' are humans wielding gigantic swords, hunting Yoma, which is the name of demons from their world, by the way. 'Zombies' are actually dead humans that have risen from the grave to eat other humans for substance. They have no intelligence, no sapience whatsoever. So the best thing to do would be to kill them, decapitation being the preferred action. What I mean by 'messengers from God', I mean that someone assumed that the person they want to kill is actually just someone who denies the existence of God, just like the rest of them. It is a bit more complicated than that, of course, but I will explain to you what I mean by that later. As for exorcists, those are just people who use whatever means necessary, such as guns or prayers – yes, _prayers_ – to deal with demons of their realm. What I meant by black suited people would be that these suits they don simply give them these superhuman abilities, such as super strength, super speed and super stamina. They use weapons given to them by some ball named 'Gantz' to kill of aliens that invade their version of earth. Then as with people with seemingly invisible arms, they are called Diclonius when singular. Diclonii when it's in plural. Their arms are able to cut through virtually anything, the arms, which are called vectors, are able to completely tear apart any human being with extreme ease, as well as fellow Diclonii. As for guns, well... they're weapons of mass murdering. Basically. They fire something called 'bullets', and basically work like very fast and very deadly and messy senbon launchers. And then there are the manga. In that order, the manga are called 'Fairy Tail', as I have mentioned, 'Hellsing', 'Soul Eater', 'Claymore', 'High School Of The Dead', 'Angel Beats!', 'Blue Exorcist', 'Gantz', and last, but definitely not least, 'Elfen Lied'."

"You still forgot one thing," Madara asked calmly. Apparently he was very interested in getting to know all these manga. "What did you mean by 'maniacs with guns'? And I believe I know the concept of guns if they're basically senbon launchers, but much deadlier."

I shook my head and slapped it. I had totally forgotten about the maniacs with guns. Those people were anything but cute and fluffy. Meaning, they should be in the mental hospitals for waving guns around and shooting bullets at anything and everyone. "The maniacs with guns are just that. Maniacs, with glorified senbon launchers. They're from a manga called 'Black Lagoon'," I explained. I sighed again. How could I have forgotten about a manga like Black-fucking-Lagoon? Well, it was nice to see that despite my personality change I was still... susceptible... to swearing words. Or perhaps the merging had a side effect of where I was calm, but it would eventually go down again. Perhaps, but those were all theories anyway. So back to reality.

"Now," I asked Madara, my hands and arms at my side in a lax manner, my shoulder relatively relaxed. "Any questions? Or will you accept my offer of _alliance_?" Once again I emphasized the word 'alliance', because that was what I was aiming for. I didn't want Madara to even _think_ that I was going to control him for even a second. Because I wouldn't control him, for even a second.

Madara smirked, then he chuckled. "I have a single question."

"Shoot," I said, jerking my chin forwards.

"Is it possible for us to gain the powers in these manga you spoke so highly of? Especially the invisible arms and the mages' powers. They all seem like they could be very useful."

I hummed in response. Would it be possible to gain the powers of the individual universes? Perhaps, but if that were the case, then why didn't I, or my fellow shinobi, have reiryoku? Why weren't we composed of reishi? "Maybe, maybe not. I do not know, to be honest. If that were the case then we should all have possessed reiryoku, spiritual energy, a long time ago. We should have actually possessed reiryoku the moment we entered this universe instead of chakra. That's my theory, anyway. But I'm glad we have chakra instead of spiritual energy. I say that because, honestly, who wants the inflexible power of reiryoku instead of the very versatile force of chakra?"

Madara smirked smugly. "Indeed. Besides," he shrugged. "We are more trained in the use of chakra rather than what you said was spiritual energy."

I nodded in agreement. It was interesting, speaking to a man who was willing to listen to all I had to say. But there was a question I had to ask him. "Say, Madara–"

I was interrupted by said man, who sighed heavily and said, "Don't call me with such familiarity. It rubs me the wrong way."

I nodded. "Very well," I said. "Uchiha is fine by you, then?" I asked. Madara nodded and looked me dead in the eye. We were fellow Rinnegan users, so there was no such thing as illusions that would be able to harm either of us. Nagato's Paths' bodies had not had the full power of the Rinnegan, therefore they were susceptible to the effects of illusions. A full Rinnegan was a near impossibility to put into a genjutsu, no matter how strong. And a merged Rinnegan, as supplied to me by my true mother Izanami no Mikoto, even less possible to put under an illusion. "I see," I said, and scratched my chin. "Anyway, Uchiha, my question to you is this," I hesitated slightly. But only slightly. It wouldn't do for Madara to see weakness in me. "How come you're here, and where is your real body? I need to have a friendly spar with you soon, I think." Sparring would strengthen any relationship with rivalry. And since I had sealed up a lot of my chakra I believed that fighting an actual hardcore Kage level shinobi, who was serious about his work would be beneficial to everyone, especially me and Madara. Building a relationship of rivalry was good. Madara had a lot more experience and had the ability to copy each and every non bloodline technique down, while I had all elemental mixing bloodlines. It would be highly useful to the both of us.

Madara nodded slowly, chuckling while doing so. "I used the Sharingan's ability to put Momochi over there," Madara waved his hand behind him, gesturing towards the still unconscious Zabuza. "Under a genjutsu. It was a command type genjutsu. I wanted him to kill you without raising any suspicion at all. Seems like that failed, thankfully. I believe that allying myself with you would be advantageous, and sparring would improve our affiliation with each other through conflict and struggles. I am just as strong as you, so having spars with you will be for the best," he claimed, smiling slightly. Well, he was smiling. How... unexpected. It was unexpected, but very welcome indeed.

I smiled back warmly. "Good to see that we see eye to eye. And where in the real world is your body? I ask because, as I said, I want us to fight as quickly as we can, to prove our strength, our abilities, our aptitudes, our capabilities, our power," I said, smiling. This time I smiled with a competitive edge.

As did Madara. He smiled with a small want for battle. It was far from a lust for battle, like what Kenpachi Zaraki, the Captain of the Eleventh Division, had, but it was definitely visible.

Our eyes glinted at the same time with want for a 'friendly' spar, opposing smiles decorating our faces. One had want for battle, the other want to prove oneself to his opponent. I was obviously the one who wanted to prove myself, while Madara was the one to have a want for a good fight.

He would get it indeed.

"You will find me when you get out of this inner world of Momochi's. I am to your immediate left," Madara said, a want for battle making his Rinnegan glint once again, its purple colour slowly changing to a red colour. Normally it would have surprised me, but from knowledge and a comforting feeling washing over me given to me from my mother in all but blood, I determined that it was because his eyes were taken from his brother, granting Madara the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.

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><p>With a feeling of something pulling on my mind I exited the mind of Zabuza. It was good to see that Zabuza wasn't actually willing to kill, or murder as the case may be, me. It would be detrimental to Haku's mental health. Once I was properly out of Zabuza's mind I saw him slump down on the ground, and the mist was completely gone.<p>

Remembering Madara's words I looked to my right, just in time to see a foot careening towards my face. I managed to channel all five natures of chakra through my body, though considerably less than what I was used to, given my chakra reserves and all. I too managed to block the strike for my head by bringing my forearm in to the left side of my head, as that was where the foot was coming from.

The foot connected with my forearm, and I felt a painful sting spreading all across my left forearm. The kick had sent me flying to the right, crashing through one tree and landing hard on another.

I groaned in pain.

Man, Madara was cruel and attacked with surprise as his element.

Sure enough, looking up, I saw Madara there, crossing his arms and smirking smugly, his red armour shining in the sun.

I slowly stood up, not breaking eye contact with Madara at all. "You could have given me a fair warning before you attacked, Uchiha," I said. I almost forgot that Madara didn't want me to call him by his first name, as he was uncomfortable with me calling him with such familiarity.

Madara's smirk widened some more, his cheeks raising in mirth, making his eyes narrow slightly from amusement. "And what, miss the sight of your surprised face? It was priceless."

I smirked too. "Well, if that's how you want to play it, Uchiha." I held out a hand to my side and created the, "Fire release, Rasengan!" I whispered. My voice seemed to carry throughout the clearing, despite the rotation of chakra that could be heard all around the clearing in the forest, and the roar of fire that accompanied it. I poured more and more fire natured chakra, as well as normal chakra, into the ball of spiralling and flaming chakra, making it grow larger and larger, making the flames brush against the lower tree branches that I was underneath. And the trees were as tall as they were in and around Konoha, so that was saying something.

Eventually, which was to say after a few seconds of a staring contest between Madara and I, the ball of swirling chakra became a large ball, the size of a basketball, basically. And the fire burned brightly, burning an eerie green. "Let's dance, Uchiha."

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Alright, this was a shorter than average chapter, but next chapter will contain the fight between Shinji Takuma (essentially me, by the way) and Madara, as well as the crowd reactions concerning Madara's sudden appearance.

_**IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ! PRETTY PLEASE!**_

If you haven't guessed yet, it was Madara that controlled Zabuza. What you don't know is that the moment he managed to get control of Zabuza was when Madara first made eye contact with Zabuza during their first match.

Don't worry, Haku is not under a genjutsu. He – is anyone else thinking that Haku is _much_ better off as a she? I mean, he looks cute, for christ's sake! No guy should look _cute_! – hasn't made eye contact with Madara Uchiha when they had fought. Madara had remote control over Zabuza when he wanted to. The mask Haku wore helped a great deal.

As for where Madara has been all this time... let's just say that he has been in hiding inside Rukongai or some other shit like that. I don't know.

By the way, I want you to know that when I write, I usually wing everything. That means that I take things as they go. I don't plan ahead. And look where that got me! Over two hundred and fifty reviews, over sixteen thousand views for my first chapter, and over sixty three thousand views for my fiction in general! How awesome is that? I never imagined that my story would gain this much popularity. I mean, I have more reviews than I have favourites and subscribers _combined_! There aren't many that can claim that, now, are there? :D


	59. Sparring Some More

**Author's note:** The poll is still going, and there have been twenty nine individual voters yet!

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><p>"Who is he?" I heard Ichigo ask the stunned silent crowd. It was obvious that Ichigo didn't recognize Madara. The audience was astonished by the sheer speed of Madara's shunshin. It was far superior than the shunpo of a seated officer of Gotei thirteen. Perhaps equal to that of a Captain level shunpo.<p>

Jyuushiro Ukitake, Captain of Thirteenth Division, at recognizing Madara for some reason, began to murmur, clenching his hands until his knuckles were white. His voice, despite being a murmur, could be heard by the entire entourage. "He is the one that gave the shinobi the name of 'chakra monster'. It was forty eight years ago. He declared himself the upcoming god of Soul Society, as well as the world of the living and Hueco Mundo. He said that no one would stand in his way. He murdered dozens upon dozens of seated level Shinigami, as well as my Lieutenant. He used techniques beyond any of our imagination. He killed most of the Shinigami with a single technique. That technique brought a meteor down. I don't know how he did it, but he did. That's what matters. He had to retreat when we Captains arrived to deal with the threat he posed. Before he went away, he somehow managed to resurrect the fallen Shinigami with something he called 'Outer Path, Samsara Of Heavenly Life Technique'. I remember it well. Far too well. Then all of a sudden the fallen Shinigami rise up, enveloped in a green light. I do not know why or how he did it, but somehow, I am slightly grateful for him to have resurrected them. Again, I do not know how he did it. When he fled we chased after him for a while. We managed to corner him to a cliff. When we asked him what his powers were, he started to explain to us intricacies of chakra, and its comparisons to reiryoku. He claimed that reiryoku merely half of what chakra was. He said that all while smirking. I remember that smirk. It was full of evil intent. Then he proceeded to show us what chakra could do; he climbed up the cliff. With only his feet touching the cliff's side. Then we chased him to the top of the cliff. But when we arrived at the top, he was gone. We haven't see him again. That is, until now."

Every person in the audience – which consisted of the still loyal Captains, other than Byakuya Kuchiki as he was uninterested and the Captain Commander, as he was not fully healed from the pressure point damage I had caused, all available Lieutenants except Momo Hinamori, seeing as she was not mentally well yet, Rukia Kuchiki, Ichigo Kurosaki because he was already well and kicking, as well as occasionally running away from a bloodthirsty Kenpachi Zaraki, Orihime Inoue, Sado Yasutora, Yoruichi, Uryuu Ishida, Hanataro Yamada, Ikkaku Madarame and Yumichika Ayasegawa – were surprised in their own way.

"What do you mean? He managed to kill that many seated level Shinigami? And your Lieutenant? Wasn't that Kaien Shiba? And how did he resurrect them?" Omaeda shot off questions very loudly, something he was quite wont to do. So since he had shouted so loudly my ears were ringing. Well, not really, but still, the point stood. He spoke too loudly. Far too loudly.

Feeling a bit mischievous for some reason – perhaps the merged Rinnegan couldn't suppress all of my emotions. If that were the case, then so be it. I wouldn't mind terribly – I created a kunai with Yin and Yang natured chakra. I used the Yin chakra to imagine what the kunai looked like, how it felt, its weight and composition. Then I used Yang chakra to actually breathe life into it, so to speak, creating a kunai in my hand with a shower of silver sparks that flew up in the air. And as an extra bonus, I quickly tied a note to the loop of the kunai. A note that said 'Be quiet'. The note appeared in my hands in a show of silver orbs floated up into the air.

Then I threw the kunai in a straight line, the trajectory leading to within an inch of Omaeda's head. Scaring him would be somewhat entertaining, and sure enough – I had to jump over fifty yards up into the air with the help of chakra in order to escape an extremely large fireball technique, the 'Fire Release, Grand Fireball Technique', as Madara called out. The enormity of the fireball did stun those watching us, just like me retaliating with a fifty foot diameter large 'Water Release, Violent Water Wave', pouring a lot of chakra into the attack – I heard a thunk, a scared roar of terror, then a shout of indignance. I was right, it _was_ entertaining to scare Omaeda.

"You shouldn't focus on scaring the Shinigami, Takuma. Though it does seem to grant us both some measure of amusement," Madara smirked with mirth. He agreed that it was funny to scare someone. Excellent. I could use that for the future to do something. I didn't know what I could use it for, but better have it than need it.

I mentally shook my head to clear my thoughts. It wouldn't do to be distracted at a crucial moment. Madara had kept putting chakra into his Grand Fireball, as my technique had threatened him with the match. His truly Grand Fireball collided with my very Violent Water Wave, creating a large amount of evaporated water. Or steam, as some may come to call it.

I landed on the ground heavily. The heavy landing made my knees buckle slightly. My concentration did not waver, however, as I continued to battle with Madara.

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><p>Since I was concentrated on the battle I was in, I didn't hear Ishida say, "If he's an enemy, shouldn't we help Takuma?"<p>

Neither did I hear the response from Captain Ukitake. "No. He is far too dangerous. He killed my Lieutenant without much effort. Besides, it doesn't look like they're intent on killing each other."

So instead of listening in on the conversation I jumped upwards, well over several dozens of feet into the air. Madara hadn't seen me jump high up into the air, despite his red coloured Rinnegan having the normal abilities of the Sharingan, thus meaning that he could take in everything that he saw in a single moment, meaning that his peripheral vision was as clear as his main focus. The Grand Fireball swept over the area I had just stood on, and Madara charged forwards, fully expecting me to have survived the enormous fireball.

In a single motion I descended upon Madara, drawing my black hilted, guard-less sword. I landed just the way I wanted to, my two feet on Madara's tense shoulders, making us both collide with each other and fall onto the ground.

But before I could properly indulge myself into the moment of having pinned down Madara, I saw out of the corner of my eye what seemed to have been a clone of Madara's coming from the left. So in a calibre of speed that I didn't know I had I put swung my sword in a way that it was then in a reverse grip, then I quickly stabbed with my sword at Madara's clone's incoming foot. The sword successfully penetrated the foot, which headed straight for my ribs. The clone dispelled itself as it had been hit, but I didn't see the rapidly approaching head butt coming from the real Madara in my haste to deflect the clone's kick. I felt a sharp pain in my chest as Madara's chakra hardened skull impacted with it. I jumped backwards in order to create some distance between the two of us and sheathed my sword, readying myself somewhat for using my hands for techniques.

"Well," I panted out. I wasn't exhausted, just surprised by the head butt. "This is going to be fun, isn't it, Uchiha?" I quickly reverted the grip on my sword so that I held it in the way a sword that long was supposed to be held. I rubbed my slightly aching chest to alleviate some of the pain I got from Madara's surprising offence.

Madara chuckled with mirth. "Indeed. Let us first try a purely taijutsu match first. Chakra enhancement is allowed."

I couldn't help but smirk smugly. Chakra enhancement allowed, then? That would mean that with my double high Kage chakra level I would be able to overwhelm Madara with pure speed and strength. With my Asura Path's supernatural strength and speed, I would be able to overpower him fluidly and quickly.

I nodded, immediately removing my smug smirk. Righting myself up so that I stood, I slammed my hands together in the Tiger hand seal to will my chakra to flow through my entire body, all five elements, along with completely normal chakra. Madara did the same, just with the Horse hand seal.

Silver chakra began to visibly swirl around me, while an ominous maroon coloured chakra started to encircle Madara.

Then we charged at each other, refraining from using the shunshin technique. Madara reeled his hand back, preparing it for a hard and heavy punch.

Not stopping, I quickly added some normal chakra to my legs and jumped over the punch that Madara had done.

While twisting in the air I grabbed hold of Madara's head. When I landed behind him, Madara was almost parallel to the ground. I intended to throw him over my shoulder. But alas, Madara's experience with all things hand to hand combat related proved infinitely superior to my ability to make things up on the get-go, my capability to do on-the-fly innovation and improvisation could be something to be feared at some points in battles, but it made my fights instinctual, meaning that any experienced and trained fighter should be able to combat me effectively and efficiently.

Madara took hold on my grabbing arm with both of his hands and proceeded to pull and swing around his head, making me fly around and around, over Madara. In any other situation it would be absolutely embarrassing to be swung around like that, but this was Madara freaking Uchiha of the Sharingan, Mangekyo Sharingan, Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, Rinnegan, whatever. So I could understand why I would eventually be put in an embarrassing position that did not include any kind of innuendos. That would be wildly inappropriate, thank you very much.

Madara released me, throwing me towards a large tree at the other edge of the clearing. He hadn't put enough chakra behind the throw, so I barely landed eight yards away from him. I immediately averted my gaze from the grassy floor and looked up to see Madara charging at me. With lightning chakra coursing through my brain at a rapid tempo, I managed to avoid the punch that Madara threw at me. I grabbed hold of the stretched arm and spun on a dime, throwing Madara all the way to the opposite edge of the clearing. I had enhanced my muscles with normal chakra, increasing the strength of my muscles to deceiving levels.

In a burst of speed I didn't know I had I stormed towards Madara like a raging tsunami of pure destruction, concentrated killing intent coming from me in waves. The killing intent was fake, of course, as I had mastered using fake killing intent in my time in Soul Society. Sure, it had taken me well over three years training with Zabuza while I had been in Rukongai, but it was better than nothing.

Madara was far too used to experiencing overwhelming killing intent, so he was not fazed by it at all.

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><p>As for the crowd watching our battle, well... some were on their knees, regurgitating out their lunch – those were the weaker ones – while others were just staring at us with wide open eyes.<p>

"H-How can someone create such an evil feeling? I feel like I'm going to die in a horrible way!" Omaeda yelled out, both terrified and had peed in his pants, as well as having puked out the massive amounts of food that he had consumed previous to coming to the clearing to watch me as I battled with Zabuza, and then Madara.

Ichigo scowled, not having been affected by the killing intent at all. Which would have surprised me, but I would have immediately known that it was because I was at double Kage level, not at my full capacity. Meaning that my killing intent, fake or not, would be at one percent of my true killing intent. Man, thoughts like that made me astounded by the power I wielded, had I any other mindset. "That feeling that Takuma-san is giving out... it's fake, it's not real," Ichigo claimed. He looked at Omaeda with barely veiled irritation. "So pull your shit together, man!"

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><p>"Has Takuma-san always been so powerful, Konan-san?" Haku asked, curious of both my extraordinary power and the killing intent I exuded. He was used to being exposed to killing intent, and could find a distinction between fake and real killing intent. He knew that the killing intent I exuded was fake.<p>

Konan did not answer. She just observed my battle with Madara with amazement.

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><p>Madara smirked. Whether it was smug or well satisfied with the battle, I didn't know. "Well, I believe that with your improvisation and my experience, we would be at an impasse. Especially if we both are allowed to enhance our bodies with all natures of chakra. I suggest a battle of ninjutsu."<p>

I tilted my head to the left, curious. "With my superior chakra capacity and potency, don't you think that it would be a battle easily won? Of course," I added, once I saw the flash of righteous anger appear for a brief moment on Madara's aristocratic face. "I do count your experience into consideration, but still, my chakra capacity is roughly twice the normal Kage level, as well as potency. But then again," I shrugged nonchalantly. "Your experience might just be what would win you the match. We don't truly know, do we?"

Madara's smirk returned in full force. "Therefore I believe that it would be reputable if we were to know each other's limits," he said, a smug tone audible in his voice.

His tone of voice sounded as if he wanted to betray me, or somehow stab me in the back once I had turned around. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I didn't believe that. Madara wasn't the type to stab someone in the back. Surprise someone, yes. Use dirty tactics, maybe. Overwhelm someone with a Tailed Beast, definitely. He had already done that. But assassinate someone whose back was turned, I did not think so. I refused to believe that.

I looked into Madara's determined eyes. He was dead set in his ways to have an all out spar between the two of us. I tilted my head to the left, calm curiosity marring my voice. "If we're going to spar, then why not just go all out? You are not used to fighting in impossible fights, and neither am I. Maybe it would benefit the both of us if we both went all out," I said, a sense of calmness radiating off of me like a cool aura from my body.

Madara nodded slowly. "You read my mind."

With that he used shunshin to appear right behind me. I saw the movement, somehow, and ducked under the fan that he suddenly had in his hands. It was probably stored inside a seal on Madara's armour, clothing, or skin. It didn't matter in the end. What really mattered was that Madara nearly chopped my head off my shoulders with his abnormally sharp war fan.

As Madara recovered from swinging the war fan with both of his chakra enhanced arms and hands, I rolled forward and unsheathed my sword. Instinctively I made a few one handed seals. I didn't know I could do them, but at that moment I was far too into the battle to calmly observe my sudden knowledge of one handed seals. Besides, it was probably attributable to my true mother giving me the instinctual knowledge of using one handed seals.

Finishing on a half Tiger hand seal, suddenly all the residual water pools from the Hidden Mist technique made by Zabuza seemed as if it had said 'screw gravity!' and floated upwards into the air. Then all of a sudden it turned into incredibly sharp spikes, reminiscent of senbon needles. They all pointed straight at Madara. "Water Release, Water Hell Needles," I whispered. Yet again precious knowledge was given to me lovingly by my true mother.

In break neck speeds the water needles flew forwards, straight at Madara. With the help of Madara's red Rinnegan with the standard abilities of the Sharingan, as in he could see the future, so to speak, he was able to dodge each and every needle. At most the needles would graze Madara's red armour. Otherwise there was no external damage done to Madara's person at all.

One last Water Hell Needle approached Madara rapidly. Madara swung with his war fan with a single hand, showing impressive strength. His war fan hit the Water Hell Needle and dispersed it into oblivion.

"Well," Madara heaved his war fan onto his shoulder. "Maybe we should truly begin to spar, then, seeing as you just aimed to debilitate instead of dealing me a hand of death." Man, sometimes Madara could be quite verbose in his sentences. But that was alright. He just talked, and I listened. That was the way of things.

I nodded calmly. "Yes, let's."

And we went straight for each other, techniques and strategies in mind and weapons in hand.

War fan and guard-less sword clashed.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Whups for a shorter than normal chapter! D:

Next chapter will feature a battle. It'll not be written about in a long fashion, but if you want a long ass battle, do tell. I am inexperienced with writing battles, but I am very willing to do so.

I hope you like the little history with Madara and Gotei thirteen I put up there. While I'm not specifically _proud_ of it, but it's alright, especially since I hadn't planned on it beforehand. :D


	60. Frozen Inner World

**Author's note:** Yes, the poll is still on. You have the chance to change things in this story! Last time I checked, which was at the beginning of writing this chapter, there were thirty-five voters! I would like some more, but I'm not asking for more. Once the next chapter, which will be chapter sixty-one, I will close the poll.

Thank you.

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><p>I walked towards the awe-inspiring sight of the gigantic gateway to the world of the living. Well, it wasn't really that impressive anyway. If the shining gate had some golden lining to it, or perhaps some statues around it, and was to be more decorated or something, then we would be able to talk. But it was as unimpressive to the trained eye – which my set of eyes were, without a doubt – as unimpressive gets. Nevertheless, Ichigo and his friends still were awed into either silence or emitting surprised gasps at the sight and the view given to them. I came to a stop beside the now healed Captain Commander. He leaned at his wooden staff that hid his Zanpakuto. The Captain Commander and the Captain of Thirteenth Division, Jyuushiro Ukitake, were the only ones of the Gotei thirteen present, except for Renji Abarai and Rukia Kuchiki.<p>

"Goodbye," Rukia said lowly to Ichigo, after Ichigo and his friends began to talk among themselves and send me, Yamamoto and Ukitake questioning glances.

"Idiot," Ichigo kindly smiled at Rukia. Look at that. Ichigo smiling for once. Surprising, but highly welcome. Especially seeing as I was slightly protective of Rukia. One could say I saw her as some sort of daughter. We had, after all, lived together for well over twenty years, without either of us growing in height or ageing.

Ichigo and Rukia were standing quite close to each other, with Rukia looking at her feet and Ichigo looking at the top of Rukia's head. Ichigo put a hand on Rukia's black and purple hair, ruffling it slightly. "This isn't goodbye. We'll see each other soon enough, won't we?"

I saw Rukia smile a little bit, but blushing as well. She was probably blushing because of indignance. It didn't look proper for Ichigo to treat her as a child, but alas, it happened. "But yeah," Ichigo said loudly, averting his eyes, which turned back to scowling like he usually did. "I guess I'll see you around."

I slapped my forehead. There was just something I couldn't resist doing right then and there. And that was to say this. "Really?" I enhanced my voice with chakra to make sure I was heard. I immediately stopped channelling because it did seem a little bit too loud for my tastes. "That's all you're going to say?" I exclaimed, albeit not loudly or angrily.

Both Rukia and Ichigo turned their heads to me, both of their bodies still facing each other. Good, it was going to where I wanted it to go. But stared at my walking form. I had started walking towards them after I had said the word 'really'. "That's really all you're going to do, Ichigo? Rukia? Rukia, I thought you better than that," I huffed and put my hands on my hips as a show of frustration, perhaps also irritation, vexation, disgruntlement, and to make things worse, some major annoyance too. None of it was real, but people had come to expect the unexpected with me, especially recently.

Ichigo's scowl returned and he opened his mouth to shout something at me, probably, but before he could reply Rukia asked, "What do you mean, Shinji-san? Did I do something wrong?"

I sighed and palmed my face. I was by no means irritated or dissatisfied with Rukia. She had only good intentions. But this chance I just couldn't let up. It was so fun to tease someone, especially when they could become as flustered as Ichigo and Rukia. It would be very, very entertaining. "What I mean is, you're not making your fare-thee-well as sincere as it should be."

Ichigo and Rukia were staring at me, both with questions practically bubbling underneath their exterior. I scratched the back of my neck. "Well, I guess it could also be that I'm not making myself clear enough." At that most people on the larger than acceptable platform nodded furiously, making me sweat drop, so to speak. "Alright, fine. I'll be as absolutely blunt as you wish me to be." I sighed again. Then I looked seriously at Ichigo, then I turned my eyes at Rukia and put a hand on her shoulder. I put my other hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "I believe it is time. Time to confess your feelings for each other," and then I sagely decided to nod.

One.

Two.

Three.

"_What_?" both Ichigo and Rukia screeched _very_ loudly.

Just as planned.

I calmly did a calming motion with both of my hands. "Easy on the shrieking, I have quite sensitive ears, you know."

Ichigo and Rukia both began to sputter stupidly, blushing a vivid red, probably inventing new shades of red as I continued talking. "What I mean is that you should go ahead and kiss each other goodbye instead of just _saying_ goodbye."

And _then_ Ichigo's friends began laughing. And laugh they did. Well, Renji and Yoruichi began laughing. Ishida just pushed his glasses up, maintaining a cruel and smug smirk, Chad was silent as ever, Orihime was rubbing the back of her neck, sporting a blush, but there was the obvious hint of disappointment on her face. Too bad, I guess. Shit happens all the time, and it was time for Orihime to acknowledge that. Besides, she was going to get it down with Ulquiorra anyway, so it was fine for her to be ever so disappointed.

Speaking of disappointment. "Rukia..." I murmured, only loud enough for it to be heard enough by said Shinigami. Rukia shut up almost instantly and looked up at me with highly annoyed and flustered expression. She was cutely pouting, too. Nonetheless, I continued talking, unhindered by Rukia's cute pouting. She didn't want me to say this, but it was for the best, see. At least when I was talking it was for the best. "I am very disappointed in you, you know."

Rukia's eyes widened, becoming comically large. "W-What? Why?" she said loudly as I let go of Ichigo's shoulder. Ichigo was too stunned to say anything, too flustered and too bashful to think of anything other than 'kill Takuma! Don't kill Takuma! Kill Takuma! Don't kill Takuma!' and so on and so forth.

I smiled softly at her. "You lie to yourself. That is not good, you know. Lying to oneself is abhorrent, atrocious, whatever. I believe that if one is to truly become strong, one must first face all problems one has with oneself. That is to say you have to face the truths about yourself, whether you like it or not. Which means..." I stopped talking, and began to hope that Rukia took the obvious bait.

I turned Rukia to face me bodily, and put both of my hands on her shoulders. I had to crouch down to be level with her eyes. "Which means...?" Rukia asked, hesitant to know the answer. She was hesitant because she had been humiliated in front of her friends. Humiliated any further and she thought that she would go dig a hole for her to die in. It was the sad, sad truth.

"Which means that you need to at the very least kiss him on the cheek," I added, and smiled benevolently at Rukia.

Before Rukia could interject Ichigo yelled quite loudly, "Alright, that's it, Shinji-san! No one will give anyone any kiss, alright? I don't _love_ Rukia, okay?"

That was not good. Apparently Ichigo didn't get the message; he was too stunned by my saying that Ichigo had more than platonic feelings for Rukia. Quickly I did a single Ram seal with my left hand, my right hand still on Rukia's shoulder. I said, "Release," and my chakra flooded throughout my entire system. I had released all the seals holding my chakra back, making it spike dangerously high. All my chakra flooded my chakra network, exploding through the chakra veins like water through tubes. Luckily I didn't explode from the explosion of my chakra levels.

Then, with all of my power back in my hands, which meant that my killing intent was able to be used at full capacity, I focused all of my killing intent on Ichigo. It was all fake, of course. I was certain that somewhere, deep inside, Rukia was hurt. Ichigo had hurt Rukia's feelings, no matter how deeply buried they were. And to me, Rukia's feelings were important. She was, after all, as Naruto would have put it, a 'precious person'. And she was to Ichigo, and to other people as well.

Ichigo staggered heavily, not having felt such immense killing intent. He began to sweat in fear. He stared wide eyed at my profoundly frowning face. "W-What, what is this feeling? A-Are you-" recognition began to spread across his expression. He began to stand up firmly again, though his sweating didn't let up one bit. If anything, standing up made the frequency of sweat increase. "You're using killing intent. Aren't you?" he asked. No, not asked. Stated. He didn't ask at all.

The only response to his question was a slight nod of my head.

"And to top it all off, you really are intent on killing me, aren't you?" This time he did ask. He really was quite afraid of me right then.

I shook my head and began to talk. "No, I do not intend to kill you. If I did, you'd be dead at my feet right now. I am exercising restraint on actual killing intent. Therefore, what you're experiencing is actually not the fullest extent of my killing intent."

When Ichigo leaned his head back a little from relief I put a finger on his nose. "Do not think for a second that you're off the hook, young man. You hurt Rukia's feelings, whether you-"

I was oh so rudely interrupted as two things happened. First, Ichigo slapped my finger away. That wasn't too surprising, of course. Second, Rukia began shouting. "I am not hurt, Shinji-san! I am not going to be hurt by Ichigo!" And so she began to list off reasons for why she thought that she was only _friends_ with Ichigo, raving on and on about nothing.

I bowed yet again to meet Rukia's eyes with my own. "Rukia," I said, interrupting her ramblings, and put my hands on her shoulders. Sure enough, Rukia stopped her incessant babbling.

However, I had plans for her. I began to channel chakra from my eyes to her own, and connected our brains to each other.

* * *

><p>There was an endless snow field. As far as the eye could see there was snow. There was the occasional tree popping out the ground. They were all very large weeping willows, by the looks of things. They were covered in snow, not a single speck of green on the trees. I looked behind me, and found quite a sight. There were extremely tall mountains far behind a dark wooden shack. The shack was on a half metre high concrete foundation that seemed to be in excellent condition. The shack itself too was in wonderful repair. There was a warm orange light coming from the sole window beside the door with a concrete staircase going up to it. A few metres in front of the stairs was a decently sized fire, a circle made out of stones indicated where the fireplace began and where it ended. Some dry wood was placed below the adequately raging flame.<p>

In front of the fire with her back turned to me was Rukia Kuchiki. She sat there, huddled into herself, hugging her knees tightly. Her shoulders were shaking. Beside her was another woman dressed in an immaculate white kimono. She had long white hair. She was standing tall and firm next to Rukia, too looking at the fire.

I correctly identified her as Sode no Shirayuki, Rukia's Zanpakuto spirit.

Without turning around, Sode no Shirayuki said loud enough for me to hear, "You do realize that if you don't confess your feelings to him you will eventually go made, right?" She probably did so intentionally, to signify that I was there. She added, "We have a guest, by the looks of things."

Rukia's head shot up and whipped her head around to look at me like a bullet being shot from a gun. I smiled gently at her, while she returned my smile with a face that clearly expressed amazement and astonishment. "Ho-How, Shinji-san, how are you here?"

My benevolent smile got wider. "Simple. I channelled chakra from my brain to yours, allowing me to enter your mind. And I must say," I said airily, as if talking about the weather. I did a show of looking around the place. It was awfully magnificent, but sadly the background was either very tall mountains that had skies swirling around the tips or flat, open ground of nothing but snow and large, snowfall covered weeping willows. "You have quite the mindscape."

Rukia blinked once. Twice. Thrice. "Em... thank you...?" she nervously appreciated on, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassed silence. She had without a doubt forgotten about chakra, and what shinobi could do with said power. She doubtlessly didn't know about my ability to mind walk, but it was of no particularly harsh consequence. "Why didn't you tell anyone you could go to someone's inner world, Shinji-san?" Rukia asked after turning her head back around to face the blaze once again. She didn't question my ability to walk the minds of others by the use of chakra. That was beneficial to my secondary cause. Pleasing indeed.

"Well," I began. "It has to do with keeping my abilities a secret. It's sort of, if not, like that one saying, 'keeping one's cards close to the chest'." Then I proceeded to nod sagely, crossing my arms over my chest.

Then my expression turned quite the serious turn. "Why do you deny your feelings, Rukia? It is of no use to deny such things, you know."

Rukia sighed. "I..." she stammered.

Sode no Shirayuki sighed disappointedly and turned around, showing me her very pale and regal face. Her eyes were casually closed, but when she was fully turned around she opened them, showing her elegant dark blue eyes. I calmly stared back at her, as did she. "Rukia Kuchiki is shy. Simply put, she is afraid of denial. That is all there is to it. She is too thick in the head to _know_ that Kurosaki will not deny her any love," Sode no Shirayuki coldly stated.

I nodded in thought. "I see," I said, before walking to Rukia's other side. I knelt down on one knee and put a hand on Rukia's shoulder. Rukia's large and sad eyes were downcast, not wanting to show me her sadness. Then I asked her a trivial sounding question. "Who are you?"

Rukia's eyes widened before she looked at me with a wide eyed, questioning look affixed on her face. "Who... am I?"

I nodded steadily. "Yes. Who are you? What's your name? What is it people refer to you as?"

"I... am Rukia Kuchiki. You know-"

I interrupted her by putting both of my hands on her shoulders and turned her around on a dime quickly to face me head on. "Rukia Kuchiki, huh? The noble house of Kuchiki will not stand for having cowards in their family. They will not stand for having people with cold feet in their family. Neither will they stand for faint-heartedness, fearfulness, or any kind of timidity. Why are you therefore claiming to be a Kuchiki, Rukia?"

Rukia's eyes widened once more. She tilted her head down, before I shook her shoulders and said loudly, "Look me in the eyes and tell me why." As Rukia looked me in the eyes, still having her head downcast, I continued, "Wipe away any fears you may have. The future doesn't wait for you. The past is the past. The present is what you should think about. There is nothing holding you back. Continue forward. Think of the future, because you only have one chance to grasp that single hair of fate. Now is that chance. Grab it! Seize the thread of fate and love, and never look back and regret!"

Rukia was basically in tears when my little speech ended. She threw herself forward and hugged me tightly. She sobbed out, "What if Ichigo rejects me, Shinji-san? What if he will hate me? What if-"

Once again I interrupted her by doing two things; I hugged her back, tightly, and whispered into her ear softly, "If he does he will have me, Konan, Zabuza and Haku, and probably Renji, Captain Kuchiki, his friends, and several other people to look out for. And you know that I always will protect you, right? Just like when you had that nightmare of yours. I protected you from it. I made sure it didn't come back. I will make sure you won't be sad ever again. I promise you that. It's a promise of a lifetime."

She sniffled twice before she spoke up, not breaking the hug at all, "Thank you... Shinji-san."

I smiled a closed eyed smile at her. "I'll gladly help you again any time soon!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I decided to stop here, simply because I have something extremely important to tell you all. It's so very important that I cannot stop thinking about it. So very immensely important that not even kami-sama itself (I consider 'kami-sama' to be 'it' because of various reasons. For a deeper clarification, please ask me politely in a review. If thou art not in the mood for politeness then just ask away in any way you want to) will make me stop thinking about it.

Or in this case she. No, I have not gotten a girlfriend, though I wish I had. I'm a big brother. Again! I'm so freaking happy I could puke! Nya~!


	61. The Dangai Precipice World

**Author's note: **Two things.

One. The poll is now closed. Sorry for those who haven't voted yet, but hey, things happen.

Two, and you might have known this from reading the previous chapter's author's note, but I'M A BIG BROTHER AGAIN! :D

* * *

><p>I straightened my back, standing up to my full height. I sighed happily. All in a day's work. Then I looked at Rukia, and I was slightly taken aback by the fierce determination clear in her eyes. Granted, it did look out of place with the intense blush she had on her face. I even believed for a brief moment that I could feel the severe heat from the blush. She was blushing up a vehement storm, not letting up at all. If anything, she had practically just invented about fifty new shades of red. She would be so ashamed of herself if Ichigo would reject her. But she would sorely regret not confessing her love for him in the end. Declaring their relationship to only be that friends had would make her sad on the inside. That definitely wouldn't do. I made her realize that.<p>

I smiled at her deep willpower. I walked so that I was behind Rukia. I gave her a little nudge on the spot between her shoulders and said reassuringly, "Go on. Know that I'm behind your decision, Rukia."

Ichigo looked on, confused by the sudden change in Rukia's demeanour. Why would Rukia suddenly have a determination to be envied of, and why was she blushing like there was no tomorrow? Those were probably the thoughts running through Ichigo's mind. "What's wrong, Ru-"

Ichigo was interrupted by a set of lips smashing onto his.

Yes, Rukia had just decided to jump up and kiss him, full on the lips. She had wrapped her legs around Ichigo's waist and her arms around his neck, crashing her lips on Ichigo's. She was afraid of what could happen to her friendship with one Ichigo Kurosaki, but she was determined to see things through. Even if seeing things through and acknowledging emotions would lead to ruin of her bond with Ichigo.

I turned to face the crowd of stunned people. There was astounded amusement coming from Yoruichi and Ishida, amazed disappointment from Orihime, and Renji just looked at the kissing pair with a look that clearly said that he was astonished beyond mere comprehension, while Chad just looked on with a stoic expression.

As for Ukitake, he just looked on, cocking his head to the right and raising an eyebrow, chuckling meanwhile. And as for the Captain Commander, he was without a doubt just looking on with an irritated face. He was doubtlessly frustrated at the lack of attention his presence was getting.

Suddenly a red armoured Madara appeared a few metres in front of the crowd, startling them quite much. They hadn't been able to sense him at all, thus meaning that he was able to sneak up on them.

I noticed the serious look on Madara's face. I turned my own expression to seriousness once I saw it right away. I turned my body to face him, turning my back on Ichigo – who was beginning to _like_ the kiss, even leaning into it, albeit unknowingly so. He hadn't closed his eyes at all, still retaining those buggy eyes – and Rukia, who was desperately trying to suck off Ichigo's face through his mouth.

I walked to Madara and turned around once more when I was beside him, crossing my arms and smiling fondly. "They grow up so fast, don't they?" I said with quite a lot of compassion.

Madara closed his eyes and shook his head, chuckling and smirking. "My my, Takuma. Are you getting _old_ and _soft_ on me now?" We both looked at the kissing pair, one with a calm and fond smile, the other with an obvious smug smirk. Ichigo had just wrapped his arms around Rukia's waist and had just closed his eyes. Rukia's blush had lessened quite a bit, to the point where it could be considered equal to Ururu. Which meant not as threatening to her well being and her health. It would be highly detrimental if there was too much blood going up to her head. The brain could explode, and then who would be the one to clean up the mess?

I smiled and, without turning my head, said to Madara, "Perhaps, Uchiha, perhaps. But I have been, am, and always will be a complete sucker for romance." My smile widened and turned slightly mischievous. "Of course, I'd rather be a sucker for romance than an _idiot_ who decides that it's a good idea to betray his village," I continued conceitedly. I looked at Madara, vainglorious.

Madara turned his head slightly, frowned, and averted his gaze to look me in the eye. His frown was quite deep, actually. "There's more to it than just me leaving the village than that, you dolt. What do you think led me to abandoning the village after donning the Konoha headband?"

My eyes widened in thought. Why indeed? He was known for being a _Konoha_ missing shinobi and a traitor. But to be a traitor you would have to have an allegiance first. Then I frowned too, albeit not as deeply as Madara. I began to whisper, so that only Madara could hear me. I was sure that Ichigo's company of friends would be more than happy to know what we would be talking about, but alas, it was all for naught. Because I wasn't inclined to betray my rival in all but bonds. I had declared him my rival after the full out spar, which I had to say was brutal and long drawn, drawing the attention of the other end of Seireitei even. I had to unseal three seals, bringing me up to three percent of my original chakra capacity, in order to win over Madara. He might have had less in chakra potency and storage, but he was certainly a lot more experienced than I would ever be. "Am I right to assume that Hashirama was the one to betray you?" I whispered, so low that it was probably to the point that Madara had to channel chakra to his ears just to hear it.

Madara sighed and took single sidestep to get closer to me, crossing his arms too. "Yes, although the circumstances and conditions were much more circuitous than that," he murmured to me. Madara cast a quick glance with his activated Sharingan – once the spar we had was done we had discovered that Madara hadn't needed to deactivate his Sharingan. At all. In fact, he couldn't deactivate it. But at least he could deactivate it to the point where it was only at the fully matured Sharingan instead of his red Rinnegan – at the crowd we had our backs to. The glance was so quick that if I hadn't been intently looking at Madara I would have missed it completely.

I nodded slightly. I understood his message. We would speak of his apparent 'betrayal' of Konoha at a later date. Not at that moment.

I shook my head a little, smiled gently, glanced briefly at the still stunned crowd with my purple Rinnegan, and then proceeded to look at the cute, but otherwise more violent than normal, couple that were snogging vigorously. Now it was time to wait for the crowd's reactions to the making out Ichigo and Rukia did.

One.

Two.

Three.

"_What the hell_?" Renji yelled very loudly, splaying his arms in a wild mannerism reminiscent to that of a crazy monkey.

And right on time, too. Just as I predicted. Just as planned. I chuckled to myself at my Death Note reference.

Which made got me thinking; perhaps I could stop Light from becoming crazy. Or perhaps I could be in two realms at the same time, or several, or all of them at the same moment. That would benefit me very much indeed. I wondered if some realms had different times than others, if it were night in the Bleach universe but day in the Naruto universe. Perhaps. But those were all wild speculations until my body got used to the omnipresence. After all, it wouldn't do to vomit every time I move, now would it? Theoretically I would vomit. Or get serious motion sickness, even when I don't do so. I would be uncoordinated, seasick, and whatnot. Besides, I'd rather _not_ try to test my omnipresent ability until I was sure that my body was fully used to it.

Suddenly I got some more information. It came from my eyes, meaning that it came from my true mother.

Oh. I see.

I subtly nodded as thanks to my real mother in all but blood. I was sure that Madara hadn't noticed my nodding, neither Ichigo's friends. I was quite certain, actually. But then again, I was quite the estranged person to begin with, so they shouldn't be too suspicious of me nodding to myself.

I had just received information about my future ability of omnipresence. The Gods of the Realms were still channelling a large amount of their power through as many Realms as possible to create a connection between me and the Realms. Essentially speaking, creating those connections took a lot of power from the deities. And the deities were not made out of chakra, or other trivial stuff. No, they were made out of pure, unadulterated, indescribable power. Not something as trivial as chakra, spiritual power, chi, or other forms of human power. No. That power was true power. Chakra was the closest thing to the the godlike power, because of its ability to naturally shape nature, to naturally speed up and slow down the natural processes of the body of all living creatures, to naturally evolve itself to either lightning, wind, water, earth, or fire, all through the use of human made techniques. But it was a far cry from the power of the Gods of the Realms. While it was the closest, because chakra can basically create miracles out of thin air, the Gods' powers were purely miraculous. Nothing short of astounding. That's simply what it is. Nothing else. If I had even a shred of their power I could without a doubt bring absolute peace to as many realms as possible.

But I would not gain such power. I would not gain that kind of immense power because I was, physically speaking, human only. I would have to ascend to Godhood if I were to become a full on deity. It however was not possible for a human to become a God, no matter how many favours said human would get from all the Gods. No matter what. Unless one was born to two Gods, it would not be possible. While I had been born to two Gods, Izanagi no Mikoto and Izanami no Mikoto, I had been reincarnated into the womb of my blood mother.

I also got another piece of information. It was very interesting, and made a lot of sense-

"Alright, you two, enough making out!" Renji loudly shouted above the stunned silence that had enveloped the watchers. Renji stormed forwards, his face red with... anger?

No, not anger. Jealousy.

I wouldn't expect it of him to be jealous, but then again, this was Rukia. She was a lovable... what was it called again? The Japanese term usually marked those of the female sex, where they had a very cold, or violent, exterior, but once their emotional mask was gone they would usually be very soft spoken and kind, and other positive qualities.

Never mind that. Ichigo and Rukia were interrupted from their kissing stupor by the rapidly approaching Lieutenant of the Sixth Division. Once that happened the Captain Commander of Gotei thirteen slammed his walking stick on the extremely large and tiled platform, stopping Renji in his tracks and turning all of our attention on his person. Yamamoto began to mumble, "You youngsters, no respect for us old people." After that he straightened himself up and grumbled loudly enough for us to hear, "Enough loitering around. Let us get started with the training of one Ichigo Kurosaki." Yamamoto tapped the ground once again with his covered Zanpakuto.

Ichigo, blushing up three storms and a half, put Rukia, who was not blushing at all any longer, down onto the ground slowly. Ichigo tugged on his Shinigami uniform's hem in embarrassment, trying to hide himself. I did notice that Ichigo did not take his eyes of a Rukia of whom was basically in an absolute seventh heaven. And I was sure that Madara, who was even more perceptive than me, noticed too. It took an absolutely dense idiot not to notice anyway. One of those morons were probably Renji.

Ichigo put his clenched hand over his mouth and coughed slightly into it. "Uh... ye-yeah..." he stuttered. How cute. With that he turned around to face the Captain Commander. "So, uh, when are we going?" he asked politely, scratching the back of his head and pulling on the hem of his Shinigami uniform.

"Now. Shinji Takuma, let us proceed."

Before I could step away from arm's reach Madara grabbed my forearm and whispered into my ear, "Konan wants to see you once you're done."

I raised an eyebrow questioningly, but I nodded nonetheless. Madara let go of my forearm and then promptly disappeared in a shimmer. It was probably either an enhanced version of the reverse Kamui thing that I seriously needed to try out, or a simple shunshin. I was guessing that it was the latter.

Well, it was time to go into the Dangai Precipice World.

* * *

><p>My fist soared through the air, stopping right in front of Ichigo's head.<p>

Ichigo didn't flinch one bit. His muscles didn't twitch. Not his facial muscles, not his body's muscles, nothing. His eyes were closed in meditation. They hadn't opened the last few weeks.

Good.

It had been four days into it before the Kototsu finally came. And as predicted, I was able to completely destroy the Kototsu train like thing with my chakra. I assumed that it was the physical part of chakra that made sure that I was able to destroy the Kototsu. The spiritual half of chakra was obviously not going to work on it.

Alas, it worked in our favour.

The Kototsu was destroyed.

And it had been over three months in the Dangai Precipice World, with Yamamoto stopping time in the Dangai Precipice World with his spiritual power. The Kototsu hadn't returned at all, but I was guessing that it was probably going to reform in a week's time in the real world. Meaning that if a week had gone by in the real world, a new Kototsu would eventually clean out any intruder to the Dangai Precipice World. Not when there had gone a week in the Dangai, because the Kototsu hadn't come and gone at all.

Essentially, I was just needed for the removal of the Kototsu. Nothing else.

Something that got me curious for a very short while was the fact that none of us had to sleep at all. I did peg it up to the fact that time in the Dangai Precipice World had basically stopped because of Captain Commander Yamamoto after a bit of thought. It did make sense, in an odd kind of viewpoint.

"So," I drawled a little bit. The Captain Commander did not twitch in the slightest. He gave no indication that he had heard what I had just said. But that didn't really matter all that much. I knew he was listening in, because he was probably bored right out of his mind, especially since he had to pour his spiritual power into the Dangai Precipice World's current of time, or whatever its name was. "How high is Ichigo Kurosaki's spiritual pressure now?"

With not a single miss of a beat, and immediately after I was done talking, Captain Commander Yamamoto answered. "It is double my own."

I blinked.

Twice.

"Well," I said, "That's surprising. It's been three months, yet I thought that it was then he was done."

Then I began speculating. "However, it can be because he hasn't gotten control over his inner Hollow, no matter how bad said control was without my own interference-"

The Captain Commander of Gotei thirteen interrupted me. "Shinji Takuma, I am trying to concentrate here. Do not speak to me."

Once again I blinked twice. I did not answer, though. Because I knew that he would want silence.

* * *

><p>We had been there for six months when I spoke up again. "What's his spiritual pressure at this point?"<p>

Again, without missing a beat, "It is below seated level."

Once again I blinked. Twice. Then I once again began speculating. But instead of saying it out loud I spoke inside my mind.

I wondered if it was because Ichigo's spiritual pressure fluctuated as it was said to do. Perhaps, perhaps not.

* * *

><p>It had been nine months exactly – yes, I had been counting. Somehow I was able to count how long it had been, when twenty four hours had gone in the Dangai Precipice World. Didn't know how, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth – when Ichigo's eyes finally snapped open.<p>

His eyes held the determination of all of humanity. It was quite a sight, actually. They were the eyes of a calm, collected, yet determined, individual. They were not unlike my own. Just that Ichigo's eyes were brimming with the determination of all of humankind, not going to back down, not going to lose, only going to win, and win badly.

I smiled smugly when Ichigo's eyes looked at me with a calm expression. "Captain Commander Yamamoto," I said slowly. Just to seem dramatic, you see. Some of my older personality was beginning to resurface again. I dearly hoped my blood lust wouldn't come back. It could stay in a corner. Or better yet, go away forever. The latter was highly preferable. "What is Ichigo Kurosaki's spiritual pressure levels at?"

The millennia old man, Captain Commander Yamamoto, widened his red eyes to the point that they were buggy. "I," he hesitated. Now that was strange, but hence my reason for my smug grin. "You were right. I cannot sense it."

My vainglorious smile turned into an open mouthed grin, similar to Naruto's foxy smile. "Excellent."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Does anyone know Clannad? I'm listening to 'Distant Years' from the Clannad Original Soundtrack, or OST, for short. The anime has truly an amazing soundtrack. I especially like Nagisa, Dango Daikazoku (which means 'big family', in that order. As in, 'dai' means 'big', 'great', whatever, and 'kazoku' means 'family'), and, hell, all of it. It's all amazing! :D

Anyway, no, Clannad will not be featured in this fan fiction. Also, can anyone guess what I just tried to foreshadow? The "It was very interesting, and made a lot of sense-" thing. Can anyone guess what I tried to do there? I already have plans for it. It has something to do with (**_NOT GOING TO TELL! :D_**), so yeah...

Aren't I cruel?

Anyway, and I know that this is bad for an author to do, but still, gotta do what I gotta do:

_**Please review.**_

Of course, what is more important is that you enjoyed the chapter. I truly hope you did. :)

P.S: I know that the Japanese term is 'tsundere', by the way. I know, I know. ;)

P.P.S: **And this is ****important. **I have created a new poll. The two guaranteed winners, Hellsing and Fairy Tail, are to be voted on. Which do you want to go first? Hellsing? Or Fairy Tail? Vote on it, please. :)


	62. Big News

**Author's note:** I'll say it again, the poll is closed. The winners have been decided.

Hellsing and Fairy Tail have been guaranteed a place in the future. I already have plans forming on the inside of my head as to what Shinji will do with those universes.

**There is now a new poll on my profile. Please vote in it.**

* * *

><p>Ichigo Kurosaki calmly blinked once before he looked straight at the Captain Commander and began to talk. "What do you mean, you can't sense me?"<p>

I laughed lightly. "That means, good little Ichigo," Ichigo was unaffected by my taunt. Oh well. It did not really matter in the end anyway. "That your power is beyond normal means. Although it _did_ take _much_ longer than what I thought it would, the result is still the same. What I mean is, your power is so far beyond anything anyone could comprehend that not even the Captain Commander can sense you. It is the natural order of things. They cannot sense your spiritual presence, or pressure for some, because it is so vast that nature itself had to take a step in. Now no one can sense you. Not even Aizen in the future."

Ichigo hesitated for a moment before he nodded. "Alright. I see what you mean."

Suddenly I smiled mischievously. "So," I drawled. Ichigo's eyebrow rose a little bit, yet his determination shone through nonetheless. "What are you going to do with your relationship with Rukia?"

As predicted Ichigo's face invented a few shades of red of embarrassment. But he didn't stutter, which I had to give him lots of credit for. "I, uh... I would like to continue my relationship with her."

I nodded reassuringly. "Good. Because if you hadn't," I ended with quite a lot of killer intent on my end. I was sure that Ichigo wouldn't even feel it tickle, but I did hope he would sense it. "Let's just say I would have to go all out against you, okay?" I said cheerfully.

Ichigo, once again to his credit, didn't even flinch. "I wouldn't think of it. I won't even _think_ of hurting her either, if that's what you're so concerned about."

I smiled again. After a moment or two, I nodded with my eyes closed, and said, "I know. And for that, I thank you very much."

Yamamoto sighed heavily and said, "Well then, you youngsters, I think it's time we go from this place. I am rather tired right now. I think it's finally time for some sleep on my end." Wasn't he impatient? But yes, the spot of which I had made myself quite familiar with in the last nine months – I could even point out that specific wrinkle on the time stream on that specific point in the time flow thing, or whatever it was – was getting quite boring and repetitive.

* * *

><p>We stepped on the tiled platform quietly, with the Captain Commander almost instantly using shunpo to disappear from the immediate area. But it had, as I had predicted, merely been an instant in the real world while we had been nine months in the Dangai Precipice World, since time had, thanks to the Captain Commander, effectively stopped completely in the Dangai Precipice World. The entire crowd, which still consisted of Yoruichi, Renji, Chad, Orihime, Ishida, Ukitake, and of course, Ichigo's newly found lover, Rukia. Madara had gone to probably spar with Konan, Zabuza and Haku – all three of them at the same time against him, seeing as he was just that powerful – but I wasn't about to say anything, really. It was his business about what he wanted to go and do. Not mine.<p>

Rukia, not caring that she didn't feel his presence, charged straight at Ichigo, who was smilingly waiting for her with open arms. Well, figuratively speaking, at least. Ichigo literally just stood there, smiling kindly at Rukia. Right up till Rukia slammed into Ichigo and hugged him as if her life depended on it. Her head was on his shoulder, and her legs once again wrapped around his waist. She was breathing very heavily, but she was determined to see things through, whether it was to cause her death by the Kuchiki family's hands or by someone else's hands. As long as the one she loved knew of her feelings, then she was happy as happy could be.

To Rukia's immense joy, Ichigo wrapped his arms around her waist and too buried his face in the crook of her neck. "I missed you," he whispered into her neck before he tightened his hold on her.

Since I was behind the hugging couple I saw that Rukia's closed eyes opened, and then widen to epic proportions. Or just widen. I didn't really care all too much about the widening of anyone's eyes. "What do you mean," Rukia began, then pulled back her head to look into Ichigo's eyes. "You missed me? You haven't even been gone for a second!"

I politely coughed into my hand, catching their attention, "I believe I can answer that."

Ichigo turned his side to me, so that the both of them could see me, what with him having Rukia wrapped around his person. I began to explain the quite simplistic logic – or lack of, for that matter – behind the Dangai Precipice World. "It's simple, really. In the Dangai Precipice World, time flows two thousand times slower. One hour in the real world is two thousand hours in the Dangai Precipice World. However, in the Dangai Precipice World, there is such a thing called the 'Wresting Flow', the Koryu. The Koryu is what the walls are made of. What I mean is that the walls themselves are the Koryu, meaning that if you stop them, you stop time inside the Dangai Precipice World for as long as spiritual power is poured into the Koryu in massive amounts. That was why I needed the Captain Commander to come with me. He has the necessary amount of spiritual power inside himself to sustain the time stop inside the Dangai Precipice World."

Both of them were slightly startled by the explanation. What I had just informed them of was apparently not common knowledge, but alas, it was a useful little trivia to know about.

Suddenly, after a single moment or two, Rukia's eyes – having gone back to their half opened usual – widened once more. She whipped her head around to look at Ichigo, who too was staring into her eyes calmly, yet a fond smile was on his face. She looked at Ichigo, her mouth open in shock. "Why," she hesitated. She was probably going to ask about the loss of spiritual presence that Ichigo had undergone. "Why can't I sense you anymore?"

Once again I coughed into my hand, making both of the lovers look at me once again. "I can explain that too."

Rukia's eyes hardened quite a lot. She was actually downright glaring at me. "_Please do_," she managed to growl, despite her desire to hit me with a heavy, very heavy, mallet. She was without a doubt angry. Because now she couldn't sense where her lover boy would be. It would make her paranoid about his safety in the very near future.

I chuckled good naturedly at Rukia's external hostility. Rukia was, internally speaking, just very, very concerned over her new boyfriend. Which was quite unusual, when one thinks about it. She was, what, a hundred and fifty years old? While Ichigo was sixteen now, maybe seventeen. He was still a child compared to Rukia. And look where he was when it came to power. He was far beyond what nature could comprehend. So nature did its part in solving that little problem. "It's because of another quite simple thing." I let a dramatic pause envelop the entire platform.

"He simply has such a heavy and intense spiritual presence that nature itself had to step in."

One.

Two-

"_What_?" Rukia screeched – Renji, Ishida, Yoruichi, Chad, Orihime and Ukitake shouted, all seven of them in surprise. The response was earlier than I thought, but amusing nonetheless.

I chuckled again and rubbed my ear. "Well, if you're going to be so loud about it-"

I was oh so rudely interrupted by Yoruichi using shunpo to appear right in front of me, and grabbed me by the collar of my white kimono. Immediately after my face schooled itself into a serious, but still calm, expression. "I've had enough! Spill it, Takuma!" she angrily shouted. "How come you know everything? How come you even know about the Dangai Precipice World and the Koryu? That's supposed to be classified Captain knowledge!"

I was quite shocked by the sudden enmity from her. What could have brought that on? Perhaps it was concern over her... friends, I would use lightly. However, despite the unexpected abhorrence, I smirked. With the subtlety of Ichigo, I put a hand on Yoruichi's face, much to her surprise, and gave her a little push to help her get off my face.

"Shinra Tensei."

Yoruichi flew backwards, spinning several times in the air, and slammed into one of the many pillars outlining the large platform, back first, and cracked said pillar with a very loud crack. And surprisingly enough, Yoruichi just slumped down, falling unconscious. Even I didn't expect that. It was highly unfortunate that she did fall unconscious, but such was life, yes?

"Yoruichi!" Orihime yelled, sending her Shun Shun Rikka spirits over towards the fallen Yoruichi. "Soten Kisshun!" Orihime commanded two of her Shun Shun Rikka spirits to check for any damage on Yoruichi's body, and if there was any, reject it ever happening.

I sighed. "I'm sorry to be the cause of animosity, but I would rather she didn't do that ever again. _Please_," I said just a bit too kindly. Meaning that if someone wasn't going to listen to me there would be pain for all. That could have gone better, but alas, thus is life. I had done some damage to Yoruichi and her pride, albeit I didn't want to do any damage to her person at all.

With that I left the building. Or tiled platform. Whatever.

* * *

><p>"I'm home," I called. I had arrived to the building of which I had become a 'thing' with Konan, so to speak. I didn't really want to say that the house was my home, though. But that was all philosophical, which meant it could be thought about at a later date.<p>

Out of the kitchen door came Haku with a frying pan in his hand. "Welcome back," he said, smiling all the while. He didn't wait for any answer, continuing to say, "By the way, Konan is upstairs waiting for you. You might want to be prepared, though."

I blinked. "Really now?" I said. "Alright then. I can smell something good. What _are_ you making?" I asked Haku. It was true, the smell would make any cook green with envy. I was sure that it would be delicious indeed.

"Oh, it's just a celebration. Konan will tell you why," Haku chirped, and he was doing so quite happily.

Once again I blinked in surprise. I hummed. What could it possibly be that Konan wanted? Could it be connected to what she wanted to tell me? That was in a high possibility, actually. Why wouldn't it be that? But no matter what it would be, I believed that I would definitely take it well. Whether it would be breaking up with each other, to her being pregnant, to her wanting a romantic break, to even her suddenly wanting to take a grand voyage through the entire existence of the multi-universe.

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts in the process. "Very well then. Where is she? Upstairs?" I asked Haku.

Haku nodded once, but equally happily. Then he went back into the kitchen to make whatever it was that he was making. But I was sure that whatever it was, I would definitely at least taste it. Because it smelled very nice.

Very well then, time to go and get going upstairs.

I knocked on the door to the room in which Konan and I both slept in. "Konan? Are you in there?" I called.

I got a response. It was a low moan of some sorts, but it was not sexual of nature at all. It was more of a moan of platonic satisfaction. It was strange, actually. Konan wasn't exactly the type to moan, unless... yeah. But nevertheless, the point stood firmly. She wouldn't moan, especially not when it came to nonphysical activities. So something was either really good, or she was trying to warn me about something. It, however, was most likely something really good, as I doubted it would be anything remotely bad. Oh well, it was best to check if something was wrong.

I opened the door, and I saw Konan sitting on the futon that was large enough to comfortably hold two people. The comforter was bunched on her lap, covering her legs as well. She was wearing a loose fitting plain white shirt, covering her large breasts. Her grey eyes were wide with what could only be described as pure happiness. One of her hands was in her lap, and the other was holding something. It was a grey device of some sort. I didn't recognize it at all, but it was an oblong shape, slightly longer than a pen. It also had a small yellow smiley face on it.

Konan, at hearing the opening of the sliding door, tore away her gaze from the small device to meet my eyes.

She didn't say anything. She just dropped the small device and threw herself on me, flung her arms around my neck and kissed me so hard on my lips I thought she was going to bruise herself. And me, but I wasn't totally worried about myself. Kissing Konan was worth bruising my own lips for.

We had been making out for about three minutes before she let her lips slowly, and obviously reluctantly, get off my own. Then she leaned her forehead on mine and whispered a life changing sentence.

"I'm pregnant."

My eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. She...

She was pregnant?

But...

Oh...

Well...

"I'm going to be a father," I whispered straight back, absolutely and completely stunned by the revelation that Konan was pregnant. It had been two to three weeks since the first time that we had done any intimate activities, so it was viable that the device – that I knew then to be a home pregnancy test – would work. I didn't realize so much time had already gone by. Two to three weeks since we had first had a sensual activity. It had been so long? I wasn't about to complain, but still, I didn't realize it had been so long already. Time surely flew fast.

She smiled warmly. "And I'm going to be a mother."

The situation finally began to seep into my sense of reality. "You're going to be a mother."

Konan's smile widened a noticeable bit. "And you're going to be a father."

I had my arms around her waist when she had jumped at me, so therefore it gave me enough leverage so as to pull her up by the waist and swing her around out of pure happiness. I did so.

I laughed – yes, laughed – out of the sheer joy. None of the future physical pain that my lover would have to go through was in either of our heads, I could tell. Supreme bliss enveloped us both, abundance of utter paradise flooded both of our emotional systems.

It ended up with the both of us cuddling in our futon after an hour of me shouting '_I'm going to be a father!_' and '_You're going to be a mother!_', while Konan too shouted '_I'm going to be __a mother!_' and '_You're going to be a father!_'.

I stroked Konan's vivid blue hair, putting it behind her ear for her. I leaned in to kiss her forehead. "Congratulations are in order, I believe," I whispered gently.

Konan giggled lightly. If it had been any other situation I would have been suspicious of one of my shinobi comrades playing a trick on me. But since we were practically bathing in sheer joy, I attributed it to that. Best thing of it all was, it was true. She was the real Konan. I was so happy at that moment I could scream out of genuine elation.

"I think that we both have to be congratulated, Shinji," Konan whispered back. Then she proceeded to lean in and kiss me full on the lips. Each kiss that followed was more intense than the last. And yes, it did end up with the both of us naked under the covers and enjoying each other's natural bodies. We made love. We made love happen. And there was no one to complain, because if someone did, then I'd shut them up. Hopefully without violence, but the point stood. Not a single soul, dead or not, would ever lay a harmful finger on my most precious treasure. She was far, and by far, the best thing that had ever happened to me. And then her pregnancy. Nothing could explain the sheer and utter happiness I felt when the reality of the situation had finally seeped into my consciousness. It was beautiful. Nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, could compare to the absolute bliss. Nothing could compare to the great emotional intensity of it. Not a single thing I had experienced could explain it. It was...

Joy.

It was as simple as that. Joy and happiness at its most chaste form. And the simpler it is, the more intense it is. And just 'happiness' was as simple as it came. And that's how I felt. Nothing could compare to the sheer joy I felt.

The following love was so intense that the both of us fainted from utter bliss from the ensuing venereal climax.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I have absolutely no freaking excuse to the lateness. Except maybe Skyrim. But that doesn't count. Not when I'm not much of a gamer any longer. Then no, it doesn't count. No sir.

Anyway, the reason I have Konan pregnant should be obvious. If any one of you are able to identify that reason in a review, then I will give you an e-cookie. Guaranteed to satisfy your taste buds to maximum. Should you happen to have e-taste buds, that is.

And while the last part of this chapter was so easy to get down, the beginning of it was a lot more difficult.

**If you notice any errors, please drop a review.** I will highly appreciate it! :D


	63. Six Ms

When I woke up I found that I was the only one in the futon. Actually, more accurately, I was the only one in the room. Blearily, I looked around the room and confirmed the fact that I was alone in the room. I didn't really mind that Konan had left the room while I had been sleeping. It wasn't really something to be bothered by, anyway. Nevertheless, I had slept incredibly well.

I got up, and only then did I notice that I was still in my birthday suit. Which was alright as long as no one was around; I didn't want to give Haku any kind of ammunition to embarrass me, thank you very much.

I looked around and saw that my clothes were all on a stool in one of the corners of the room. I walked towards it, then I got myself dressed to the occasion. Whatever that occasion was remained to be seen. I put my white kimono on my body, followed by tabi socks, then black tabi boots.

Finishing dressing up I walked towards the sliding door and opened it. Lo and behold, it was the familiar sight of the empty hallway. Which was entirely normal. It was highly probable that my fellow house mates were downstairs. Actually, I couldn't see why they would not be.

I walked down the stairs and, surprise surprise, there were all four of them sitting at the round, brown table. Zabuza was, predictably, leaning towards the table with his arms crossed over each other. Not predicted by me was that he was looking slightly more elated than usual. It was barely noticeable, but it was there.

As for Haku, he was even more friendly, enthusiastic and otherwise happier than normal. It was fine, though. I wasn't about to get suspicious, but it was worth noting.

Madara was calmly sitting with his hands folded in his lap, a light smirk playing around on his lips. It was playful and generally happy about the situation. For once he wasn't wearing his red armour and black suit. He still had his thick gloves on his hands. It seemed like he wasn't willing to part with them at all. I wasn't about to judge him about him wearing a pair of gloves. It could be that they were simply a very important pair of gloves to him. Again, I wasn't the one to judge him on something as trivial as his choice of clothing. It was all up to him. What he was wearing could be seen as slightly business like. A dark turquoise button-up shirt, and a black set of pants, finished by a plain black tie properly tied around his neck.

As for my beautiful, blue haired lover, she was sitting at the table and looking very, very content. In fact, if I hadn't had made love to her the previous day, I would be highly sceptical of the content and happy aura she was exuding from her body.

It was quite obvious what everyone was so pleased about.

The news of Konan's pregnancy was, without a shadow of a doubt, exceptional news that everyone should and would be happy about. If someone wasn't happy about it I would have to kick some sense into them. That, or talk some sense into them. Most preferable option was of course to talk some sense into whomever wasn't happy about my lover's pregnancy.

Haku and Konan turned their heads towards me. Haku gladly decided to stretch his right arm up and wave at me boisterously. "Welcome to the world of the awake, Shinji!" Haku said aloud, smiling widely.

I nodded in thanks to Haku before I let my gaze wander to the utterly stunning Konan. She was smiling gently while rubbing her hands together in her lap nervously. She was probably still wondering how my reaction would properly be now that I knew about her pregnancy. But I was genuinely happy for both her and myself. But mostly her, of course.

I sat down besides Konan. It was then I noticed the smell of food wafting through my nostrils. I turned my head to see the food that was on the table. My smile just got even bigger.

* * *

><p>A sword without a guard clashed a sharp edged war fan. Sparks flew in every direction at the moment the weapons met each other at rapid speeds. A follow up attack was blocked by red armour. Both opponents jumped back, away from each other, to gain some breathing space.<p>

It had been half a year, or six months for those really into it, since the announcement of Konan's pregnancy. It was well in the winter. Konan's belly had really grown large. And while we hadn't exactly been sexually active, nothing had made me happier and giddier than rubbing Konan's belly with a lot of affection, knowing that a living being was in there. And that living being was full of kicks and punches. Full of energy. Full of life. That living being was my child, was my most precious treasure. And judging by the way that the baby was kicking, I would have to say that we would have our hands full with the baby as energetic as it was. And I wouldn't have it any other way either. I loved both Konan and our child so much that there was nothing to compare it to. The first time I had a crush on a girl I felt as if I had finally felt love. The first time I had gotten a girlfriend, I thought that what I had felt was nothing compared to the love that I felt when I had a crush. But when I got together with Konan, I thought that the love that I had felt was nothing compared to the true and utter love that we both had for each other. But nay, yet again I was disproved when I got the news that Konan was pregnant. And the longer we both were together, the more that love grew. It was incredible how intense that love was.

Not even the near meaningless anger that sometimes overtook Konan did anything to lessen the growth of love. Sometimes it ended with the two of us hugging each other tightly, and safely, so that the baby would be squished.

There was one time that Konan complained, quite loudly, that I was too lazy, not going up to give her some hot cocoa. I of course went straight to the kitchen to make her some, shouting 'Yes, darling!', both in fear of what an angry, pregnant woman could do, and in love for Konan. I was willing to sacrifice anything. I hadn't even flinched slightly when Konan decided that the cocoa was too hot. I had immediately taken the cup of hot cocoa and blew a little on it. Sometimes I had used a small ice release technique to cool the liquid chocolate until it was exactly how Konan wanted it.

There was also that one time when Konan had found some pickles to be extremely tempting. I had rushed to a grocery store nearby – fancy that, I hadn't known that we were any close to a shopping market, but alas, we were actually spoiled in that regard – and purchased some pickles with the money that I had gotten from the Gotei Thirteen. Just to be safe, I purchased carrots too. I had known from experience that Konan really liked sliced carrots. When I had gotten back I had given Konan the jar of pickles. She had thrown the jar right back at me in anger, yelling – quite uncharacteristic of her, but I loved her nonetheless – 'I don't want pickles anymore! Where are my carrots?'. And I had then handed her the bag containing the carrots. She had sighed heavily before glaring at me moodily. 'They aren't sliced', she had growled furiously. I had gone straight to the kitchen to slice all the forty six carrots into pieces.

Then there was also the time when Konan wanted to punch something out of anger. Preferably something that would respond with an 'Ow!'.

And then when Konan had asked me if she was fat. I had of course said 'No, of course not, sweet heart! You're perfection just the way you are.'

She hadn't believed me, and proceeded to break my nose, claiming that I had thought that she was fat. That didn't really matter, because she immediately after had sat down on my lap and had begun to heal my broken nose, kissing me and apologizing profusely.

The make-up sex was fantastic for her. For me, it was not really to be compared to the other times we had had sex, but it was nothing to not shake a stick at. I didn't have a pregnancy fetish, mind you. I didn't like it when the stomach was sticking out as far as the breasts, or further out for that matter. But I didn't mind it if it was Konan. I loved her with all my heart. And I had a big heart.

I jumped up to avoid the war fan that would otherwise bifurcate me. Madara – it was pretty obvious that my sparring partner that day was Madara – and I began to exchange rapid attacks, not jumping away from each other or evading, but blocking and parrying each other's weapons of choice. We lashed out with brutal kicks and significant punches. We struck at each other, watching for any incoming attacks, watching for anything that would give one of us the upper hand.

There was also that one time that Madara and I had been severely punished by Konan. Madara and I had had ridiculously large lumps on the top of our heads to explain that we had just been hit by a very angry, and pregnant, woman. Konan's opinion was that our spar was far too loud, and that we could have waken up the baby. She totally disregarded the fact that the baby was safely tucked away inside her belly, and when Madara tried to fight back verbally with reason, I had struck him upside the head, right where it hurt, and hissed, 'Do not oppose her, you lunatic!'. Yeah, Madara was pretty freaked out at that point.

Then there was the three way spar that Zabuza, Madara and I had. It was a draw, because Konan had been calling on me, and she looked positively furious. The moment I arrived within punching distance she had knocked me upside the head. When I had implored on her reason for hitting me, she had simply said 'Because I felt like it, that's why.' I didn't argue her point. She had continued by grabbing the collar of my black shirt that I wore underneath the white kimono and kissed me with unmatched passion. It had confused me at that point beyond measure, but I then threw that confusion to the winds when she exclaimed quietly 'I want sex.' She was four months in at that point.

And last noteworthy thing to mention was that I learned how to make cocoa just right, I learned how to please Konan better, I learned how to cook and prepare food better than I already did, which was not saying much actually. To be specific, I learned how to make food that pleased Konan's taste buds. I was basically a slave up till our baby decided to pop out of her mother's vagina. Alright, that sounded downright crude. I didn't want to be crude. I wanted to be sane and polite. So instead of saying that the baby would 'pop' out of her mother's vagina, I should instead say 'until the water broke' or something along those lines. It was a much more family friendly term.

I leaned backwards, enhancing my entire body with six types of chakra – chakra without nature included, with the last three being Yin, Yang, and Yin-Yang – so that I could bend at the knees, and avoided a decapitating slice with Madara's war fan. I stretched a hand behind me and planted it onto the grassy ground. I jumped backwards with the hand and arm as supporting ground to get some breathing space between Madara and me. Although Madara would have none of that, and charged directly towards me. To get even more ground between us I jumped a chakra enhanced jump so that I would land behind Madara with about six metres between us.

Konan had to regularly be escorted to the Fourth Division for check ups. I was one of those escorts. Another was usually the Fourth Division Captain, Retsu Unohana. If Unohana was not available for escorting Konan to the Fourth Division for pregnancy check ups, then Isane Kotetsu would be the one to escort. If neither of them were available, then a random Shinigami from Fourth Division would lead us. However, there had only been one or two occasions where there was a nondescript Shinigami that would be with us.

When Unohana was the one to join us Konan and Unohana would always have a conversation about either the pregnancy – a serious conversation – or about what the baby's name would be – a light hearted conversation.

When it was Isane, Konan and I would discuss what the baby's name would be. Isane would be politely quiet and stay out of that discussion. We had decided that if the child's sex would be male, we would name him Naruto, in honour of his namesake. If the child's sex would be female, we would name her Hinata, too in honour of her namesake. I had to explain that one a bit, though, but when it was thoroughly explained Konan readily agreed to that name. Both of the names were of some serious quality. Neither of us complained.

The first time a random Shinigami escorted us, it was a brown haired, dark eyed man. Who was promptly hospitalized after he flirted with Konan. We never saw him again.

The second time had been a serious looking woman with black hair that was tied into a tight bun, and dark eyes. She was clearly deprived of sleep, as she had very large, dark bags under her eyes. She also seemed to glare at everyone and everything except the two of us. And something told me that the smile she wore was actually genuine. Just really, really tired. She had explained that the man I had beat up real good – at which point had been the day before – was actually a member of one of the royal houses. A very respected member. I couldn't care less about it, especially since the woman then had said that the man was to be faced a hearing by his royal house's elders. She also explained that the man had a reputation of being a flirt with women, and had a super inflated ego, thanks to his spoiled upbringing.

After that Unohana assured me that she would pick whomever would escort us should she or her Lieutenant not be available more carefully. I politely told her that it was a good idea to do so, and I also said that it was alright, as long as I got the satisfaction of beating someone that even thought of Konan in _that_ way. I was incredibly defensive and possessive when it came to Konan and our child.

I quickly turned around and flew through two hand seals. Horse and Tiger, in that order. I noticed that Madara too had gone through the same hand seal combination. We both breathed in at the same time, and released equally gigantic balls of flame. The flames clashed. We both fought for control over the battle, pouring as much chakra into our techniques as possible.

Curiously enough, Haku never had any trouble with Konan. I had wondered about that, but I attributed it to the fact that Haku was always so kind and collected, and was always the voice of reason. And that he clearly did not want to be a guy, and wanted to be a girl. Or something along those lines of which made him stay clear of Konan's pregnant and ultimate wrath.

The flames suddenly turned black for the both of us. It seemed that even the flames of Amaterasu could not be burned by its own fiery fires.

We had to stop channelling chakra through our techniques when we heard a violent screech coming from behind Madara. We both cancelled our techniques and turned towards the screecher. Lo and behold, there was an angry Konan – sometimes I wondered why anger seemed to fit Konan's beautiful face, until I realized that I loved every mood on Konan's face except despair and sadness and the like – that was shouting to the high heavens about god knows what. "What are you doing at this important a time, Shinji? What is your excuse this time for holding Shinji up, Madara?"

"Don't call me M-"

Madara was oh so rudely interrupted by Konan being in arm's reach of him. Madara saw the danger that she posed, and quickly cowered out of Konan's lashing arms.

Konan stormed on forwards, undaunted by not being able to hit Madara. I gulped. Seemed like I would be punished for something again. Not that I would complain, but hell hath no wrath like a woman scorned. So I wisely decided to stay where I was without moving a single muscle.

Madara smirked at my predicament, and wanted to see his rival get pounded into the ground with a lady's fist. Or fists. Or kicks. Or head butts. Whichever came first.

Konan came within a single foot, well within my personal space. She was one of the very few ones that was allowed to get into my personal space. Suddenly Konan's fist met my cheek. Knowing that Konan wanted the satisfaction of a harmed individual, I fell purposely onto the ground and yelped in pain. "Where the hell were you, Shinji? I have been searching for you for god knows how long!" Konan shouted at my pathetic, whimpering form.

Madara's smirk predictably widened. Konan must have sensed it, because right after she had hit me she turned around and pointed threateningly at Madara. "And you're not off the hook either, Madara! You've been holding my Shinji off for quite a while, not making him able to take care of me!"

Madara's smirk vanished in an instant, and his hands shot up in a placating manner. He wasn't about to shoot back at a pregnant woman, much less one who could make me kick his ass.

Konan didn't care for getting a response from Madara. She wanted to win in an argument, she was getting that wish. Whether we wanted her to lose or not. Konan turned back at me and proceeded to yell nonsensical garbage at me, threatening me with no sex for a month, threatening me with with castration, threatening me with ball busting and w

hatnot. I knew that she would never _actually_ do those things, but it was still horrid and cringe worthy to listen to. Never in my entire life was I as scared as then. Threatening me with no sex _for an entire month_? I could never think of that! Already she had my attention. Hell, she had my attention the moment that I had heard her screech.

I both pleaded guilty, '_Damn right you're guilty_!', and that I was extremely sorry, to which she replied '_Fuck that and come make me some chocolate_! _Now_!'.

I still loved her. Because why should I not? It was merely both pent up aggression and her hormones speaking. Nothing else. I loved the woman to death, and neither Konan or I, Shinji Takuma, would have it any other way.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Alright, so maybe this was more of a filler chapter, but the six months time skip was sort of necessary. I didn't want to write content up till the entire Fake Karakura Town battle thing. I hope you understand. Oh, who am I kidding, of course you understand! You're not exactly stupid, are you? ;)

Oh! I find out that my multi-universe theory has actually a large percentage chance to be true (about fifty percent, really. But that in and of itself is huge)! Explanation? Black holes. The matter and energy that black holes actually suck up **_has_** to go somewhere. Why not an entrance to another universe? I think it's highly possible for that to be so. Some physicists actually support that theory. Of course, the matter that gets sent out of the black hole is more or less shredded beyond mere comprehension, but it's there nonetheless. Just that it'd be impossible for us to travel to another dimension without risking severe death by atomic shredding. So that means that if one believes in the multi-universe theory, one isn't necessarily agnostic. There wasn't a creator of this universe. That was a mistake on my part. I think that space is so fascinating, especially since I wasn't exactly incorrect either. Everything you can think of, as long as it's physically possible, has a chance of being true. That means – and I mean no offence to any religious people out there – that omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence is well and truly impossible. That means that the existence of any kind of higher being that possesses even one of those values does not exist, because black holes would tear that being into smithereens. Or something along those lines. That means that chakra, while it may exist in some lesser form, will only be able to be formed into either water and earth, or fire and lightning and fire. I say that either chakra is energy, or it is matter. I am leaning towards matter.

Alright, this has been a lengthy author's note, but nevertheless, I am well and truly fascinated by nature. Nature is without a doubt the most powerful force out there. Even humanity fears nature. Nature creates life, it has the possibility of destroying it. Nature is the one true god. It is absolutely random, yet its actions makes sense nonetheless. We cannot even hope to attain the chance of harnessing nature's powers to the full extent. While nature has no form of omnipotence, omnipresence or omniscience, it still has the one thing that proves that it at least steps into the realm of fictional godhood. And that is the ability to create life. And destroy it. And then recreate it. There is a lot that goes in favour for nature. There are people that would definitely think that what I just said would make me a theist, but no, it makes me an atheist, because I believe in the power of nature and science. To be a scientist would mean that you strive for omniscience, but acknowledge that it as an unachievable goal, yet a goal science nonetheless strive for almost desperately. Then again, omniscience is a very noble and very good goal. I swear that I am both an atheist as well as a 'believer' of the multi-universe theory. The matter and energy that gets sucked up by the black holes _has_ to go somewhere, and since black holes have been observed for a very long time, and no matter what, no matter has been expelled from any of the black holes that have been observed. Hence we (or I) can assume that that matter and energy has to go somewhere (and since I have already explained that matter and energy cannot simply disappear), so why not a parallel universe? A black hole's inception has been recorded before (the death of a star), but never has it been proven that the death of a star is the same as a 'big bang', but it would make sense.

But never mind, I have rambled on and on about this. If you are interested in getting more information about the multi-universe theory from me, then go ahead and ask me in a review. You could also Google it, but really, who does that when you can ask me? ;)

And that is it for this chapter, I hope you have enjoyed the humour at Shinji's expense.


	64. Talking While Sparring Is The Way

**Author's note: **I have to say, having a Harry Potter marathon has made me think of a decision concerning about this story. Try and take a wild guess... go on! I won't judge. Whoever guesses correctly, and gives all details about everything, will get an e-cookie! :D

By the way, **_this chapter contains spoilers of the latest Naruto and Bleach chapter_**!

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><p>I had been informed by the Captain Commander, who had personally arrived to tell me, that the construction of the fake Karakura town had begun. I was also told by the Captain Commander that my assistance and presence in the battle was suggested by the Captain of Tenth and, surprisingly, Twelfth Divisions. Seeing as it was recommended by the Tenth Division Captain, I'd probably best listen and consider the option of being present while the battle for the fake, and real, Karakura town would be going on.<p>

I would have to consider my other option first, though. It was highly likely that Aizen, seeing as I had knowledge that no one should have, would prioritize me over others. My presence would obviously make sure that the battle would lean heavily in the favour of Gotei Thirteen instead of Aizen's little 'army' of Espada, Fracción, Menos Gillian, and that big blob of worthless stinking death. I had forgotten its unimportant name, but I knew that its stench reeked of death, and that it would spew out large amounts of Menos Gillian.

Though to be honest, the proposition of participating in the battle was very tempting. The fights would be intense, and I was getting bored sparring with Madara and Zabuza. I had learned of their preferred tactics, so I was not entirely sure that I would be able to battle against others if I only fought with two. Besides, my favourite female character from Bleach had the potential of being in the fake Karakura town too. I would hope that Tia Harribel and her Fracción would be able to be convinced to side with at least me instead of Aizen, who would betray them. If I couldn't convince Tia to take my side, I would have to wait until Aizen decided to cut away any burdens. Or however that saying goes.

Another option would be not attending to the battle of the fake Karakura town. That was also a possibility. However, I would of course be observing so that Tia wouldn't get hurt, or her Fracción get burned. I had made Captain Commander Yamamoto promise to aim to incapacitate rather than burn them. I had recently received knowledge that Madara's chest had a... for a lack of a better word, 'disfigurement'.

Or to be blunt, he had Hashirama Senju's fucking face on the left side of his chest.

But why was it not visible through the business shirt that Madara usually wore when he was not wearing his red and cumbersome armour? Perhaps it was chakra manipulation. Manipulating chakra in such a way that makes the face recede. Or perhaps the shirt was simply too baggy to show anything clear.

But I had faith that what Madara had to tell me about him 'betraying' Konoha had a lot to do about his possessing Hashirama's face. Perhaps it coincided with the supposed and highly theorized fall of the Senju clan? My Mother hadn't been able to give me any information about the fall of the Senju clan, but I was sure that my honourable Mother had a reason for refraining information about that.

Nevertheless, I had to come to a decision about being on the battlefield or not. I had three options. The first and most obvious option would be the option to actually be there to fight alongside Gotei Thirteen. The second option would be to be at the battlefield, but hiding until I was sorely needed by someone who required assistance with their battle. The third option would be to stay in Soul Society and wait until the battle was over, accompanied by my fellow shinobi.

I had been approached by Madara while I was writing some experimental seals down in the living room. I had had to put away my sealing equipment, because I never could talk and listen while writing down. It was known as multitasking, that I knew, but I couldn't for the life of me be multitasking when it was about sealing too. Madara had asked me to spar. Which was highly unusual. Usually it was I who asked Madara about a spar. But I wasn't going to question Madara's sudden change in demeanour. Besides, just because it was unusual didn't mean that it wasn't in character of Madara.

Anyway, I had told Konan that I would be sparring with Madara in the usual place. Konan had of course reacted violently by breaking my nose.

Nonetheless, she allowed me to go out on the condition that when we were done I would make her three litres of hot chocolate for her. She specified that I would have to be careful to put as much chocolate in it so that it didn't hurt the baby. Or some other biological stuff that I could make absolutely no sense about. I never was good at biology...

Never mind. Well, I had to re-break my nose so that it could heal properly. And it hurt like a bitch. Though it was sped up with healing it with chakra. And since I had perfect chakra control, the nose was healed in less than a minute. Usually people either had awesome chakra control, but small reserves or vice versa. Very, very rarely would you come across someone who had both extreme reserves yet near perfect chakra control. I was one of those with ridiculous proportions when it came to both chakra control and capacity.

I had to put bragging aside as just as we arrived at the usual clearing we sparred in Madara thrust his war fan in my general direction. I had to unsheathe my blade so that Madara's war fan wouldn't decapitate me. I was pushed back a few metres before I managed to channel some chakra to my feet so that I would stick to the ground.

Diverting Madara's war fan upwards so that he was possibly off balance I threw my clenched hand forwards in hope to hit Madara's chest plate. My fist landed on Madara's chest plate, and as it was very predictable about what would happen after getting hit, Madara was launched backwards for a few dozen feet. Madara landed on his feet after twisting around a bit. His armour had been slightly cracked from my otherwise devastating punch. Madara's armour had taken a large amount of the impact of the blow, cracking it slightly, but it left him as a whole unharmed.

"That was a good punch, Takuma," Madara sneered slightly. He was without a doubt annoyed that his precious red armour was cracked, even a little bit.

I nodded as thanks, and proceeded to brandish my sword. "I would like to know what you meant by saying that there was more to your supposed betrayal of Konoha than what meets the eye."

Madara sighed. But after the sigh he used a rapid shunshin to flicker towards my position. I barely managed to raise my sword to block from the left. I had escaped from decapitation – something I assumed was what Madara favoured highly – just barely. I enhanced my legs with large amounts of chakra, and jumped diagonally forwards, above Madara by at least six feet. I landed well over eight feet away from Madara.

Without hesitating I turned and slashed wildly with the sword in my right hand. It hit something, and what it hit was Madara's war fan, which he had thrown at me. Luckily for him, his war fan was connected to himself with a chain with oblong rings. Madara pulled hard on the chain, and the war fan flew back to him. He grabbed the war fan with his left hand. After grabbing the war fan he charged straight at me and we clashed our weapons so hard that sparks flew in every direction.

"Why did you betray Konoha, Uchiha?" I asked loudly enough to be heard above the grinding of metal against metal.

"Because Hashirama betrayed me, that's why," Madara calmly answered. All of a sudden he got out a scythe attached to a chain similar to the one on his war fan from seemingly out of nowhere, and slashed towards my midsection.

I managed to jump backwards to avoid the fatal slash. "How did he betray you? According to the history books, you had had enough of the Senju way of things. You wanted to wage war to make peace. You wanted the Elemental Nations to be one nation under Konoha, and the only way you thought that could happen was through either war or the Tsukiyomi. Am I right?"

With that Madara's face flickered with anger, but he calmed himself before he was seriously angry. Snapping his eyes open he activated his red Rinnegan. We made eye contact, but with the battle of chakra potency between us, neither of us had the upper hand in it. The battle was in fact a battle of mastery of illusions. With eye contact, both of us wanted to place illusions on the other to get the advantage.

However, we realized at the same time that with perfect, or near perfect, chakra control, neither of us would win. Therefore, at some unseen point, we both snapped out of making illusions with our eyes and disabling them at the same time. And at the same time our weapons clashed.

In my other hand, in a shower of silver sparks, a long metal rod appeared in order to counter Madara's two weapon benefit.

"Not exactly," Madara said as all four weapons clashed. "While I did in fact have enough of the Senju's peace loving ways, I never said at any time that I wanted to put the world under the control of Tsukiyomi. I believe in the free will of humans, but I believe that if fear-" with that Madara jumped backwards well over ten feet, and proceeded to activate his Susanoo. The maroon coloured Susanoo jumped into existence, Madara being its centre point. As it was in canon, it had two heads, one side with two tusks on each side of the jaw, and the other side having one horn on its forehead, pointing upwards. In both sides' right arms were undulating blades, while both other hands were completely unoccupied. And strangely enough, Madara's killing intent soared into unbelievable levels. Never could I make a clear distinction between fake or real killing intent when it came to Madara. It was strange, but I attributed it to Madara's control over everything he did.

Madara continued after he had activated his Susanoo and made his killing intent known. "As I said, I believe that if fear controls people, there will be true and eternal peace. Hence why I 'betrayed' Konoha. I wanted people to fear me as much as possible. That is why I took the Nine Tailed Fox under my wing. That is why I battled Hashirama. That is why I barely got away."

I could see where he was coming from, though. While not the best way to obtain real and eternal peace, it was certainly something. Orochimaru for example had instilled fear into the hearts of Konoha, especially the old and wizened heart of Hiruzen Sarutobi. "So basically you're saying that as long as people have a common goal in their hearts they'll work together against that goal? Is that it, Uchiha?"

Madara nodded. He willed his chakra construct to swing one of its rippling swords at me. To avoid getting fatally wounded I willed my own Susanoo to come into existence. One of my shields – the one bearing my paper angel – blocked the sword successfully. I didn't budge even a single inch.

Madara's face turned to a frown. He probably wasn't expecting my shield to suddenly appear out of nowhere, much less me not moving even an inch. Though to be fair, I did use one of my Susanoo's shields.

I made eye contact with the armour clad Madara. "But why? Why not try the harder, but more rewarding, way? Why not try to make Konoha stronger through a strengthening process? Why not try and make Konoha the main force against the rest of the Elemental Nations-"

I was interrupted by Madara, who said, "Because I want Konoha to be part of that inevitable alliance. I want Konoha to live the longest out of all the hidden villages."

I frowned with that thought. Madara's justification was sound and sure. I found not a thing to counter that belief. But I believed that there was always another way to create real peace. However...

"Why did you eventually come to the conclusion that the only way to world peace was through the Infinite Tsukiyomi? It doesn't match up with my knowledge of what you have done," I said, right before I pushed back the blade with my shield. With that my entire Susanoo came up into existence, decorated armour and all.

Madara's frown deepened. He had to jump backwards as my Sword of Totsuka descended on his previous position. Both of our Susanoo grew well over fifteen metres tall, Madara's Susanoo incredibly ominous and foreboding, mine incredibly blessing and angelic.

Madara sighed a little after channelling more chakra into his chakra exhaustive technique. "Because without a lot people under my command, I can't do any change to the world. Therefore I decided to collect all the Tailed Beasts to get enough chakra to perform the Infinite Tsukiyomi. I needed a small amount of people in order to create a spy network in order to find the Jinchuuriki. With my Rinnegan, and I'm sure you are already aware of this, I would summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to extract the Tailed Beasts. After the complete gathering of all the Tailed Beasts the chakra would be enough in quantity and restorative rate to perform the Infinite Tsukiyomi for at least three hundred years. I also take into consideration that I would use a chakra intensive technique that would grant me immortality as long as I had enough chakra for that. But I digress. After gathering all the Tailed Beasts the combined chakra in the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path would form the Ten Tailed Beast. After the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path becomes the Ten Tailed Beast again, I will use a sealing technique to seal the Ten Tailed Beast into my body, binding its life chakra to my own life chakra. That would grant me an extremely long lifetime. If I wouldn't be using the Infinite Tsukiyomi I would truly be an immortal being. Alas, I would have to use the Infinite Tsukiyomi to make sure that humanity would truly know peace."

My own frown intensified. While I understood Madara's intentions and all that, I didn't think that that would be the real kind of peace. Free will was essential in what makes humans what they are.

We both willed each other's Susanoo to grind the swords – Madara's oscillating swords and my Sword of Totsuka and the Scimitar of Tsumugari. Both of my swords were set aflame with the fires of Amaterasu to augment the swords' power – together in a fierce battle between chakra potency, capacity and force of wills.

I decided to voice my thoughts eloquently. "While I see where you are coming from, and I understand your intentions, I don't think that that is the real way to true peace. True peace, while a noble goal, is fundamentally unachievable. Except if a very powerful being is on the highest seat and controls everything. In order to be on the highest seat, you need to be either all powerful, everywhere and nowhere at the same time, or know everything. But we both know that that is impossible. It is physically impossible for someone or something to be omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient."

In a flurry of swords, Madara managed to divert both of my Susanoo's swords, and in proxy, shields, upwards. In an unrelenting speed, Madara managed to nick my Susanoo's plate armour. Ironically enough, the sword hit the head of the decoration itself, seeming as if his goal was to achieve the thing that the Sage of the Six Paths managed to achieve with the help of the Ten Tailed Beast's chakra and his own. The blow pushed my Susanoo and me back a metre or so.

Quickly, in order to manoeuvre a lot better, I cut off the chakra supply for my Susanoo and rushed forwards in speeds an untrained pair of eyes would never hope to see.

But Madara saw what my intent was, and strengthened his Susanoo's defence, while willing one of his Susanoo's swords to descend rapidly down at me.

The dust and dirt flew up, but not a speck of blood could be seen as to where the undulating sword fell. Only dust, dirt and the occasional stone and grass.

Two hands emerged from the earth beneath Madara's feet and slapped chakra disruption seals on his ankles, as well as movement restriction seals. The hands receded back into the ground as Madara's Susanoo evaporated into nothingness.

Madara, surprised by my actions, couldn't for the life of him move his feet. The seals weren't very intricate, and given the time, Madara could remove them in his sleep, but since I was already making sure that Madara was flying upwards with a kick to the chin, he didn't exactly have time to do anything.

Madara's head was swimming in confusion as to what had just happened, and because the kick to the chin was without a shadow of a doubt enhanced by monstrous amounts of chakra.

What Madara didn't know that while he was ascending with extreme speed, it had been a clone of mine that had kicked him up into the air. I was waiting for him in the air, ready to make sure that his landing on the ground would not be pleasant at all.

As he came within arm's reach, I threw my leg upwards, and then swung it down, hitting Madara on his long haired head. His neck was suddenly bent at an awkward angle. Then at breakneck speeds Madara was on a fast crash course, heading straight for the merciless ground.

I too fell down, but at a much lesser rate. I used wind natured chakra to make sure I wouldn't fall too quick.

Madara hit the ground, kicking up even more dust, grime, dirt, stones and grass, scattering them to the high heavens.

When the dust settled, I saw Madara barely conscious on the ground. Just as I landed beside him I squatted down beside him so that I could finish my reasoning. "You know, I know that you have clear and pure goals. But the ends don't always justify the means. You have brought on sadness to the future generations of the Uchiha clan by exiling yourself from Konoha, throwing away your allegiance and your own family, all for the sake of peace to the world as a whole. That is not possible without the assistance of many. The true way to peace while retaining free will is love."

I saw a flash of anger in Madara's eyes. But before I could let that anger fester into rage, I rectified, "The true way to peace," I said, while holding up a finger to make a point, "While retaining free will is _both_ _love_ and _power_. Both at the same time. That is one mistake that the Sage of the Six Paths did. He chose the younger son, seeing as his ideals were of love and not power, instead of his older son, whose ideals for lasting peace was power and not love."

I pressed on, hoping to make a long-term impression on Madara. "The Sage of the Six Paths, as far as we know, has only made one mistake, and that was to not choose both sons as his successors. He should have done that."

With that Madara fell completely unconscious.

"I will do that."

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I feel so freaking epic right now! Nya~! :D


	65. White Invasion: Rewritten

**Author's note:** I am listening to awesome music and watching astonishing animated music videos. Next time you're on YouTube, try searching for 'One Piece AMV' and then press on the first and then the second on the list. FUCKING WIN!

**Update!:** Yes, I have rewritten this chapter. I have decided, upon EVA-Saiyajin's intelligent (no, seriously!) advice, to do a complete rewrite of the Fake Karakura Town 'arc'. There were so many obvious mistakes on my part. Oh, I'm so damn embarrassed for not realizing them sooner! *extreme Hinata level blush*

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><p>It had been two months since I had finally beaten Madara in a spar.<p>

I had received some more knowledge about my omnipresence. I had another month to go before my body would be able to traverse the multi-universe properly. Though it would be severely limited by the use of my chakra, meaning that as long as I had enough chakra I would be able to use it. It wasn't specified exactly how much chakra it took, just that it was something that took so much not even a standard Jounin would be able to use it even once, which meant that at least Kage level reserves were required.

But that was irrelevant to the current situation. We all sat by the round table, drinking the green tea that Haku had prepared. There was another Shinigami there, too, though. It was a fairly nondescript Shinigami, too. Brown hair, some brown stubble on his chin, a sword tied to his waist. "It is time, Shinji Takuma, Konan, Haku, Madara Uchiha, Zabuza Momochi. The construction of the fake Karakura town has been completed. The Captain Commander wishes to know where you will preside during the battle in the fake Karakura town."

I sighed. Where should I be? Could I even travel to another sub dimension? Would I be able to even travel to the world of the living? Or to Hueco Mundo? It was something that I could ponder about on a later date.

It was time for a decision as to where I, and my fellow capable shinobi, would be at. Konan was eight months ahead in her pregnancy, so there was no way she was going to be even close to the battlefield. Nope, not going to happen.

So, what should I do? Where should I be?

Option one was to stay away from the battle, stay with Konan. I could ensure that Konan wouldn't be kidnapped or something like that.

Option two was to be at the front line without actually participating unless it was necessary. However, that would open up the risk that the first option removed; the possibility of Aizen targeting Konan.

Option three was to join in the combat. Obviously I would be targeted, but also mean I could divert some of the enemy, giving the Gotei Thirteen leeway. Maybe I could even convince some of Aizen's Arrancar to switch sides. Not to side with the Shinigami of the Gotei Thirteen, but with me and my fellow shinobi, or at least stay out of the battle.

Now then... which option should I take? As much as I wanted to personally protect Konan and ensure her safety, I couldn't be sure that the Shinigami would win without my assistance. Who knew what would happen with all the changes I had incurred? It would probably be best for me to assist the Gotei Thirteen, especially since I wanted to try and ensure some of the decent Arrancar survived.

Mulling it over some more, I finally decided what to do.

"I have made my decision," I said with finality.

I turned my head to Madara. "You and I will go and fight in the battle, while Zabuza and Haku stay back in order to ensure that nothing happens to Konan."

Zabuza grumbled something unintelligible, while Haku simply smiled and happily nodded his head. With Zabuza's and Haku's skills they would not be very good at fighting Arrancar or Hollows. Zabuza and Haku were more one versus one fighters, and seeing as there would be many opponents, it wouldn't be as easy as them fighting against one. They'd stay back to protect Konan. They were definitely strong enough for that.

"Very well," the undefinable Shinigami said. "I will pass on the message to the Captain Commander." The Shinigami stood up from his seated position and continued by bowing to us shinobi. "Thank you."

With that he promptly disappeared in a shunpo.

What followed was a loud slam on the table by a grey skinned individual that went by the name of Zabuza Momochi. All eyes darted straight to Zabuza. Zabuza was looking directly at me with unbridled fury. "Why the fuck do I not get in the battle, huh? Am I too weak now?"

My hands shot up in a placating position. I said calmly, but hastily, "No, I never said you were weak. I simply think that Aizen might send someone after Konan. And seeing as Uchiha and I will be in the fake Karakura town, I won't be able to protect her as easily as you might be able to."

Zabuza grumbled something indecipherable, pulling on his bandage mask slightly. It would be an absolute cold day in hell before Zabuza would apologize for his temper. But I wasn't going to point that out. Zabuza would kill me if I did. Zabuza proceeded to rub his forehead all the while cursing under his breath as a complaint.

"Stop being so immature, Momochi," Konan expressed. Quite uncharacteristic of her if she in any state other than pregnancy. "You're acting like a spoilt brat. Now sit down or I'll sic Shinji on you." Wow, what a great confidence booster, Konan. I feel so wanted...

Zabuza didn't dare incur Konan's pregnancy induced wrath, so he wisely decided to shut up and sit down, crossing his arms.

"Well, any other complaints about the plan?" I asked, my voice louder than normal, but even.

They all shook their heads, albeit Zabuza grudgingly so. Yeah, he seriously wanted a better fight.

"Alright," I said. "Time to go, Uchiha."

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><p>It turned out that shinobi could in fact pass through the Senkaimon. I had theorized that we wouldn't be able to go through them because of our mixture of physical and spiritual energy, but apparently that wasn't so.<p>

Either way, none of the technicalities were very interesting to me. As long as it worked just fine, I was satisfied.

When I arrived I immediately noticed that Yamamoto had not entirely followed what I had said about what had happened in canon Bleach. Ah, didn't matter.

Almost all of the Gotei Thirteen's Captains and Lieutenants – that were still loyal – were there. The only ones not there were the Twelfth Division's Lieutenant and Captain and the Fifth Division's Lieutenant. Probably because Ichigo, despite having 'merged' with his Hollow side, wouldn't know how to open up a Garganta. With enough research, Kurotsuchi would be able to do that and send Ichigo back.

Well, in the end, I didn't really think it would matter _too_ much in the end. Ichigo was after all stronger than any other being from Bleach, aside from the Spirit King, and I wasn't even sure of that yet, seeing as I didn't know about him, or it, at all. It would take a ridiculously skilled opponent to even stall him.

Madara and I had decided to simply stand on the building in front of the Gotei Thirteen's forces, not hiding ourself at all. Which would draw attention to us, seeing as we were the only ones that weren't standing on the air.

We only had to wait for maybe half an hour before a Garganta appeared, ripping the air apart and pushing it away, allowing entrance to the world of the living. Out stepped Sosuke Aizen, Kaname Tousen and Gin Ichimaru. Behind Kaname Tousen, grabbing onto his leg, was Wonderweiss Margela. There was something odd about Wonderweiss, though. He had green hair, rather than blonde. To be honest, though, I merely dismissed it as insignificant, unimportant. It was but a change of colour.

I tuned out Yamamoto's and Aizen's verbal bouts and speeches to each other. They weren't important at the moment. It was only words, and words only hurt one as much as one allowed them to. Though I did catch one single snippet of it. Something about shinobi, destruction and continuing existence. Didn't really care all too much. If Aizen thought that us shinobi were destruction made flesh and couldn't be allowed to exist, then so be it. It wasn't like he could do anything to kill me or anyone close to me.

Suddenly, while Aizen was speaking, nine Garganta opened around Aizen's, totalling in ten open ones. The one directly above Aizen's was the largest by far, no argument there. Out of it stepped three Fura creatures. They all looked similar, but there was one distinguishing feature. The one to the left had a red eye, the one in the middle had a green one, and the one on the right had a blue eye. Other than that, they were identical.

Out of the rest of the Garganta stepped the Espada and their respective Fracción. I did a quick head count, and the ones _not_ there were Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and Ulquiorra Cifer.

Well...

This was different. Some things I definitely hadn't expected. I hadn't expected the rest of the Espada – well, other than the two that were missing – to be here, only the top three. But with my interference, it must have caused that change. I was a wild card on the table, and Aizen was incredibly wary of wild cards, borderline paranoid.

In multiple uneven bursts of static, all Espada and Fracción charged straight at me and Madara.

I did a backwards somersault, flipping away from a multicoloured barrage of Cero and Bala. I had to repeat that somersault a few times to avoid getting hit, the roof cracking within a blink of an eye. I had to jump on a couple of other buildings just to stay out of the destructive techniques.

I reached the edge of another building, and I was given a slight breather. It gave me just enough time to think. Seems that Aizen was truly paranoid about us shinobi, especially me, given that most, if not all of those initial attacks were aimed squarely at me and not Madara. Seems Aizen didn't know that Madara was almost, if not entirely, equal to me.

That was all I had time to think before before I had to use a body replacement technique, replacing myself with a grey concrete tile. Said concrete tile got destroyed in less than a split second by the many coloured Cero that were shot at it, and that wasn't even considering the destruction of the building itself.

I took a quick glance around. It seemed as if Aizen and his two Shinigami assistants – And Wonderweiss – were standing back, watching the chaos of the thousands of Menos Hollows fighting the Gotei Thirteen.

As for the Fura, I didn't exactly have the time to observe them as I drew my sword on sheer instinct and blocked a katana when my sword wasn't even out of its sheath. The opposing weapon was wielded by a tall, muscular, dark skinned man with yellow eyes. He was clearly the Seventh Espada, Zommari Leroux.

And he decided to open his big lipped mouth. "I am Zommari Leroux, Seventh Espada of Aizen's Arrancar army. I have heard about you, chakra monster. You are a threat to Aizen's coming paradise. You must die for that paradise to come to fruition."

With that he zoomed towards me in a rush of static and I had to use another body replacement technique to get away.

I drew my blade out fully. Just in time, too, as I barely reacted in time to bring it into position before it collided with another blade, one wielded by the brown haired individual named Coyote Starrk.

Oh dear...

I jumped back, and just as I landed I had to sidestep to avoid a big scythe that slammed into the concrete, ripping up the ground around it and causing a good sized crater to form. Nnoitra Gilga seemed intensely interested in fighting me, if his wide smile was any indication of such.

I actually liked continuously dodging and using the body replacement technique to avoid getting bifurcated. I even had to bend in such a manner that I became perpendicular with the ground to avoid Tia Harribel's sword.

It was exhilarating to a certain extent. Seeing some of my opponents getting frustrated of never being able to hit me even once. Though to be fair, I was using a fair amount of chakra to stay in one piece, a lot of which went to my brain to enhance my reaction time. And damn did I need that.

Nnoitra's scythe swung at my head, aiming to separate it from my shoulders, but I simply ducked under it.

Of course, dodging, deflecting, avoiding, jumping and ducking weren't good ways to defeat someone. Not on its own, anyway.

So, in order to even the odds, I released two restraint seals on my back and did a certain technique that Naruto used quite often.

The roof was suddenly covered by three dozen – minus one, seeing as I was there too – puffs of smoke, totalling in thirty-five. The sudden appearance of the smoke made the five Espada on the roof stop. But only for a single moment before they flew upwards to escape the smoke.

Once the smoke disappeared I saw that Madara had already jumped to another building, and was fighting Tia's, Baraggan's and Nnoitra's Fracción, as well as Szayel Aporro Granz and Yammy Llargo.

And while it looked fairly even, it was very apparent that he had his hands full.

And with a synchronized jump, the clones spread to other rooftops, all in groups of six, meaning six groups in total. Enough to deal with the six Espada opponents of mine.

I was in the group that Tia Harribel decided to face.

The other five groups faced with Coyote Starrk, Baraggan, Nnoitra, Zommari and Aaroniero. Strange that the Espada split up, but it could be the pride that they had for themselves that made them fight their groups individually instead of working together or picking off each group together. Besides, they didn't know which group I was in, and I was willing to bet that Baraggan, Nnoitra, Zommari and Aaroniero wanted to kill me first. Good thing the smoke had obscured who the real me was.

The group facing Coyote was actually doing surprisingly good, everything considered. They had within the first minute lost three clones, but had learned from those clones' mistake. Always be ready for an attack from an unexpected angle for one thing. Starrk was simply so fast that he didn't even leave a flicker behind him, seemingly disappearing in an instant. And he seemed to prefer striking at unconventional directions. He would strike swiftly and efficiently, and without the long hours of training, experience and enhancement of chakra, my clones would have lost before three seconds had passed.

The group that went up against Aaroniero was doing excellently. Aaroniero was above average at swordplay, hand-to-hand combat was at a decent level, and just about everything else combat related was slightly below mediocre. He hadn't popped a single clone after two, maybe three minutes, hadn't come close to it even.

Nnoitra was not very happy when he fought me. He had curiously already released his Resurrección. A strange decision. Though given the circumstances – fighting against multiple opponents, losing three fingers, one on his right hand and two on his left, tongue cut in half, a gash along his right arm, half of his hair cut in a close call, multiple lacerations on his chest – it might have been somewhat merited. Just like Aaroniero, he hadn't killed a single clone, though he was remarkably better than the Ninth Espada.

Zommari was quick. He was fast. He was a fucking speed monster. He had made three clones dispel after about two and a half minutes, all through sheer speed. But after that minute long burst of speed there was a noticeable lack of energy coming from the self proclaimed fastest Espada. He might have been one of, if not the, fastest of the Espada, but he didn't have the energy to back it up. That's what earned him a cut that disabled his right eye, a split lip, six broken ribs and a cut on his forehead.

And the old guy, Baraggan Louisenbairn, he was a formidable opponent. He had dispelled four clones, all through his use of time manipulation and his immense speed. I had temporarily forgotten about his dangerous time ability – hey, it had been over six years, where I had been conscious anyway, since I had thought about the individual Espada's abilities – and my forgetting of it had cost me. Though my clones did remember quite quickly after the first two 'deaths'.

And then there was the group the real me was in, the one against Tia. She had done very well, and her swordsmanship was remarkable. Her mastery over her own body – hand-to-hand combat, that is. Though I certainly wouldn't complain about mastery over _other_ certain aspects concerning one's body – was quite above superior. She seemed specialized to fight one opponent at a time, but she was still proficient at fighting more than one at a time, given that she hadn't received a major blow yet.

One of my clones had to use another replacement technique in order to escape being skewered by Starrk's sword. And yet another to escape his sword yet again. And again, same process. Rinse and repeat. Starrk seriously wasn't letting up. It was unlike him, actually. Perhaps it was Aizen's fault that Starrk was so serious. Was it because Aizen threatened him? No, that idea was dismissed almost immediately. Aizen was not the type to do something like that. Maybe Aizen convinced the Espada, not just Starrk, that I was an extremely dangerous enemy, one that had to be killed. That was more like Aizen, actually. Might be likely.

That thought was shoved into a corner as a sword came straight at a clone's face. Seeing an opportunity the clone leaned back, making the sword fly through the air right in front of the clone's face, as well as surprising Starrk. Starrk had gotten used to cutting rubble while fighting my clones. It had frustrated him to no end, yes, but when something else did happen, it surprised him. The surprise lasted for a very short moment, but that was all that was needed for my clone to get a chakra charged punch to Starrk's head. The blow disoriented Starrk, giving enough time for the other two clones to force Starrk to let go of his sword by cutting the tendons in his arm, disabling the control he had over his sword arm.

That was a very lucky shot on my end, one I intended to exploit as much as possible. Starrk could still use his sword, but he would have to use it with his other hand, one he wasn't too used to. And sometimes using a sword, or a weapon at all, when one's not skilled in using it is worse than not having a weapon at all. That was evident as Starrk was on the defensive for the next few minutes. He had had to use Cero more often than he could count, and not even then it helped little, as the clones just used a replacement technique to escape the blasts of spiritual energy. And seeing as Lilynette wasn't close by, and would be in danger if she was, Starrk couldn't enter his Resurrección.

"I recommend giving up, Coyote Starrk. You cannot win in the state you are in now," one of my clones declared evenly.

Surprise shone briefly on Starrk's face before his bored, yet slightly serious, expression returned. Starrk answered. "I'm afraid I can't do that. I have to fight. I was ordered to by Lord Aizen."

My clones bent their heads to Starrk in respect. "I acknowledge that," one of them said. "But are you truly willing to die because of the order of one person? One who simply does not deserve your trust and loyalty?"

Starrk narrowed his eyes. "You know nothing of what Lord Aizen has done for me."

The foremost clone shook his head. "I'm afraid I _do_ know what he has done for you. He has given you and Lilynette shelter, given you two comrades that won't die from being close to you due to your massive spiritual pressure. Friends that you two could depend on without fearing repercussions. I know what he has given you, Coyote Starrk. And I am willing to bet that Aizen had an ulterior motive for giving you these important things. I am willing to bet that Aizen would throw you away like trash the moment you stop being useful to him."

Starrk's eyes narrowed even more. "Again, you know nothing about anything," he growled. Uncharacteristically of him, he was getting angry. Not sloppy, my clone could tell that much. If anything, Starrk's stance got more refined. But it was only just noticeable.

My clone tilted his head to the side. "Then care to enlighten me, Coyote Starrk? I even know that Lilynette is a part of your soul. That is the reason you haven't used Resurrección yet. Because without her, you're not capable of using it. Am I right, or am I wrong?"

Starrk outright glared at me. But my clone continued. "I will give you the chance to call Lilynette to you so that you can enter the Resurrección state. It will give you a larger fighting chance against me."

Aaroniero was not having a good time fighting my clones. He had had to escape via Sonido many times, and he was starting to feel the wear and tear. He had considered releasing his Resurrección, but he wasn't given a window of opportunity to do so. This 'chakra monster' that he was against was unlike any other opponent he had been up against. It was scary, actually. Not in the sense that he would shiver in fright, more like a sense of impending doom that he could not do anything against but wanted to anyway.

Aaroniero used Sonido to escape an incoming punch to his helmet. He wasn't in a very good location anyway, so he fled to another rooftop, one further away. He was pleasantly surprised when it took two, maybe three seconds, for the clones to spot him.

Enough time for him to release his Resurrección.

"Devour, Glotonería!"

His lower body expanded at an extremely rapid pace, ripping his lower body clothing into less than shreds. The bulging flesh turned into a purple colour, many grinning mouths with yellow teeth and literally dozens of stubby tentacles decorating the ugly released form of Glotonería.

Yeah, he was one disgusting piece of grotesque work. Well, then, time to get to work.

Aaroniero didn't realize that he had essentially doomed himself to an even quicker death. Not only had he made himself a much, much larger target, he had also made himself incredibly slow. He was an easy target. Very easy.

A few cuts here, another few replacement techniques there, and a lot of cutting later, Aaroniero was dead.

No longer needed, the six clones dispelled into a small puff of smoke each, not noticing the minuscule movement the purple mass of heavily bleeding and torn apart flesh was making.

The group against Nnoitra was doing relatively well, and even when Nnoitra released his Resurrección did they – basically I – not have any noteworthy difficulty dodging Nnoitra's swings. He telegraphed his strikes in an extremely obvious fashion, making it all the easier for my clones to escape the severing of heads, limbs and torsos.

Nnoitra was obviously getting increasingly frustrated. His expression told my clones as much. He was getting emotionally destabilized as he continued attempting to land strikes at my clones. His frustration reached new heights as my clones looking at him with pitying eyes. While Nnoitra wasn't _bad_ by any means, he wasn't _good_. He was markedly average at fighting several opponents at once. Again, not bad, but not good either. He seemed better at fighting a single enemy at once, and that seemed to work against him now.

Nnoitra made a hasty decision. He fell back a small distance and began to make the entire place explode through the liberal use of Cero. If any of my clones came close to him he would use Cero.

He was getting cautious. That was pretty obvious, actually. And seeing as he still had only two sets of arms out at the moment showed that he would try and take my clones by surprise. He would not have a very good time when he would later discover that that would be useless.

In an unnoticeable flicker all six clones appeared in front of Nnoitra, startling him into a very brief stupor. It was just enough time for four of the clones to grab onto an arm each and the other two to stab Nnoitra in his chest, hitting some of his vital organs in the process.

Nnoitra coughed up blood. Since his major organs were damaged he couldn't use his high speed regeneration to create the two extra arms. That would have surprised the clones, but now, no... he was dying. Even the stubborn Nnoitra realized that.

Nnoitra was dying.

But damn if he wouldn't at least take them with him!

A yellow glow illuminated Nnoitra's body, and with a final breath, he said, "Cero Suicidio."

And with a large explosion of yellow spiritual energy that enveloped the entire building – down, left, right, forward, back and up – Nnoitra, as well as my clones, were done for. I didn't need them after Nnoitra's death anyway, so he actually, in a way, did me a favour.

Against Zommari my group was starting to get the upper hand. While the Arrancar Espada was so fast it was almost unreal, he didn't have the energy to continue to be so fast. His decision in using Cero in conjunction with his extensive use of Sonido didn't help his reserves in the slightest. Either he would continue to use the current strategy – which would eventually result in his death – or he would release his Resurrección – which would also result in his death.

Either way, Zommari was not in a good position. Therefore, after a hasty decision, managed to release his Resurrección after sending a larger than normal Cero out at my clones.

But my clones didn't want to test Zommari's Resurrección ability of controlling shinobi. With that in mind, my clones began to hack and slash at the fifty-eight eyes of Zommari's.

Zommari tried in vain to escape my clones' wrath, using his Sonido to escape his coming death. Swords stabbing the multitude of his eyes, his eyes never able to gain control of his opponents. It was frustrating him. He had never been against anyone as fast as I, as tricky and slippery as I. While Zommari could still use Sonido in his Resurrección, it was much slower.

But Zommari would not give up, not when Aizen had commanded him to kill me. Zommari held the deepest respect for Aizen, so much that he would literally die for him.

"Who are you?! What are you?! How are you able to dodge my sovereignty? No one can do that! How are you able to do that?! Answer me, chakra monster!"

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that he was getting progressively more and more insane, panic shrouding his reasoning and inhibiting his combat abilities.

"Easy," one of my clones answered, but not breaking the calm expression. "But I'm not going to tell you about it. I realize that it's a common courtesy to tell one's opponent about one's abilities..."

My clone had summoned a protective barrier of ice behind him – me? – and was leaning against it. "But as you said not a minute ago, I'm just a mere monster, undeserving of any mercy, courtesy, honour or anything. So why not return the favour by killing you?"

Zommari saw it before it hit, but couldn't do anything about it.

Almost as if...

He had lost his body...

And lost his body he had. Swords were efficient like that.

Against Baraggan the remaining two clones were not having it easy. They had to come up with some kind of battle plan, lest they lose against the Segunda Espada. Energy and matter couldn't get close to Baraggan without him noticing and evading. It was easy to get the concept of _how_ to kill Baraggan, but actually doing it? Easier said than done.

The only real idea was to use some kind of space-time seal to transfer Baraggan to another, empty dimension. And if not that, then-

And one of my remaining two clones against Baraggan got an idea.

He used a quick body replacement technique to both escape from Baraggan's axe and reappeared beside the other clone. "Gravity," my clone muttered.

My other clone's eyes widened and his body froze. And then he proceeded to slap his forehead so hard he dispelled.

Now there was only one clone left. And the only thing he did was sigh and mutter, "Fuck."

Baraggan's eyes narrowed. "What is this? Some kind of plan? Lowering your numbers is not going to help you avoid the power of-"

My clone had had enough with Baraggan's repetitive speeches. "Age and time, I get it!"

My clone had really had enough if he was glaring at Baraggan instead of just trying to assess and analyse the situation. But in a way, it didn't matter.

He simply stretched his hand at Baraggan and began to use his – my – Rinnegan to manipulate the gravity that affected Baraggan.

Baraggan was immensely startled at the feeling of getting heavier and heavier at the same time. "What is this?"

My clone really was quite pissed off if he had completely disregarded the concept of not telling one's abilities to one's opponent. "Gravity and time. Both are concepts that cannot be proven with anything material. What is it that pulls and pushes? Gravity pulls, time pushes. But how? What is gravity made of? What is time made of? Can anyone replicate the effects? Can anyone stop time? Can anyone stop gravity? The answer is no. Both are eternal. Both are what started the universe and they will _never_ end."

The feeling of heaviness got stronger. "However, which is stronger? Time? Or gravity?"

Then Baraggan's body could not resist the effects of the gravitational force pulling him down. "The answer too is simple. It all depends on how much energy each has. Gravity might not be as strong as time, but if given enough energy, its pull will be so strong that time itself can't stand against it."

Baraggan felt as if he was squeezed through some kind of passage. Except said passage was in his stomach.

"Such a phenomena is called a 'black hole'. An anomaly not even the most intelligent of scientists has yet been able to explain."

At that moment Baraggan's face twisted to one of intense pain. It even looked as if he was losing consciousness for a few moments.

"And time itself cannot possibly stand against such a miracle."

Then Baraggan's body simply up and vanished.

That was unexpected. I had simply assumed that he would be crushed into a small ball of gore or something. Granted I hadn't tried using that kind of gravity manipulation before, but still. The vanishing of Baraggan's body was a pretty good indication that I should use my Rinnegan's ability to manipulate gravity a bit more.

I got the memory of the last clone to dispel at an unfortunate time. Tia's sword almost separated my arm from the rest of my body because of the surge of memories I got.

The rest of my clones – eight remained. The three against Starrk hadn't dispelled yet – they too got the message from the latest dispelled clone. But I wanted Tia to be on my side, or at least not on Aizen's, so no using gravity manipulation against her. How should I incapacitate her without giving her any lasting injury? That would be somewhat of a challenge.

Something I could revel in.

Tia managed to jump back, doing a back flip to avoid a backhanded punch top her torso. Once she had landed and I had regrouped with my clones, she voiced her thoughts. "Are you getting tired, chakra monster?"

I simply sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose. "I'm not a chakra monster," I calmly stated. "The proper term is 'shinobi'. Learn it, please."

Strangely enough, at least to me, Tia nodded. "I don't really care," she said, just as, if not more so, calmly as I had.

I shouldn't be too surprised by her statement, given that while Tia was a fair and polite person, even to her enemies, she still saw me as an enemy. "Very well, Tia Harribel," I said. I was a little miffed, but hey, enemies and all.

Tia frowned slightly. "How do you know my name, shinobi?"

Not even stuttering? Noteworthy adaptability in regards to terms and titles. Good, very good. "I know a great many things, Tia Harribel. About you, your Fracción, your fellow Espada, their Fracción, various other Hollow based people. I also know that the reason you have pledged loyalty to Aizen was because not only did he give you power to protect the people you care about, he also saved the Fracción you now have."

If Tia was surprised, she didn't show it. "I see. You know a great deal about me, about us, then."

Brandishing her sword, she continued. "I cannot let you live. You will not harm my Fracción. I cannot allow that."

I shook my head. "No. I will not kill anyone that doesn't have the intent on killing me. I'm not that type of person."

Tia's eyebrows lowered. "I am inclined to believe otherwise."

Just when it looked like she was about to take action, three things happened.

One, the three remaining clones against Starrk dispelled from too much damage.

Two, a titanic pillar of energy rose in a column up into the skies, forcing the clouds apart.

Three, a powerful wind – powerful enough for me to feel its force slightly pushing me to the side – swept across the entire city block.

Coyote Starrk had released his Resurrección and quickly used Sonido to appear beside Tia.

And with a brief glance at the brown haired, gun toting individual, Tia Harribel decided to pull out her Resurrección too.

Water spilled out from behind her, looking like as if a pair of large wings had formed behind her. The wings encased her as two words came from her.

"Destroy, Tiburón!"

Then a big, white sword stabbed through the water and swung down, cutting through the water and forcing it apart from its cocoon.

Tia Harribel too had released her full power.

Yeah, if I were anyone else, I would be shitting my pants in fear.

I cracked my neck and dispelled my clones. "Let us get started, shall we?"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Yeah, this has been rewritten... again. _BUT_ there have been loads of grammar and logic errors.  
>I cannot thank EVA-Saiyajin enough. Let me say that now.<p> 


	66. On The Precipice

**Author's note:** In case you didn't know, chapter 65 has been rewritten and chapters 66 (excluding this one and the ones after, of course) to 70 have been deleted.

* * *

><p>Hot diggedy damn. Those were the words running through my head as I kept dodging and vainly trying to attack at the released forms of both Coyote Starrk and Tia Harribel. Tia's combat abilities increased by such an extent that I didn't know it was possible. And despite being stronger and faster than her, Starrk became the ranged support for Tia, shooting so many Cero I had no time at all to try and counter.<p>

I had had to release two more of the seals on my back. Even with four seals released I still struggled against them. They worked really well with each other, perhaps they had sparred against each other and knew how each other fought.

I was in serious trouble. I could have tried using Susanoo, but something told me it wouldn't stand a long time against the combined attacks of both Tia and Starrk.

Unless...

…

Why didn't I think of that before?

If I had the time to palm my face, I'd have done so.

Jumping back to get some breathing room I released two more seals, resulting in six seals in total. I would need the extra chakra for what I had in mind. And then, going through the motions in my mind, I willed a dozen shadow clones into existence, an equal number of puffs of smoke signifying their appearance. Some were on different rooftops, but that didn't concern me in the slightest.

The clones quickly spread out away from me.

With a shimmer of silver chakra, my clones and I summoned and encased ourselves in the giant chakra constructs known as Susanoo.

The Susanoo were a bit different from my usual one. The most obvious difference was the fact that none of them had more than one set of arms, not even an extra set of forearms extending from the elbow. Another difference was the fact that all of them had more or less than five fingers. Yet another distinction was that the Susanoo were clad in simple kimonos rather than the armour, wide sashes tying said kimonos together. They wore geta sandals, and gloves with metal plates on the back. The faces of the Susanoo were clearly not there, meaning no eyes, no mouth and no nostrils. The shape of the noses were difficult to tell apart from the rest of the Susanoo's faceless heads, the ears being covered by spiky hair that went down to the middle of their backs with two horns stylized into them. Speaking of the faces, each Susanoo had but one.

And in the hands of the Susanoo were plain katana with curved edges and without guards – the one I had created after fighting with the Captain Commander, essentially – and small bucklers with yin yang symbols with ripple like effects on them, similar to the Rinnegan.

I strengthened the outer skin of the Susanoo, making it more and more opaque.

Despite my huge Susanoo squad, the faces of both Tia and Starrk remained impassive, save for a raised eyebrow from Starrk and a tilt of the head from Tia.

Well, time to beat some fear into them, then. Make them stop fighting, or exhaust them so that I can properly talk to them without having them try to kill me.

"Come at me now, Tercera Espada Tia Harribel, Primera Espada Coyote Starrk. Fight me till you have nothing left to give."

Maybe I shouldn't have said that.

I made a mental note to never anger either of them after this 'war' was over. Their efficiency had vastly improved when they were up against larger opponents, but it hardly worked in their favour, seeing as there was more than one big enemy. With speed totally belying their size, my clones' Susanoo were able to avoid all major damage to themselves, sustaining only nicks and chinks off of them that were restored seconds later.

But that was not to say that my two Arrancar foes were idle or slow. Hell, Zommari wasn't even a fourth as fast as Starrk, and Tia was at least three times faster than the Septima. I was lucky I had the foresight to release two extra seals, or else I would have already lost a few more clones.

It was even harder to fight them because I wasn't aiming to kill. And with such large swords, it was quite the challenge.

Tia and Starrk both appeared in the air a fair distance away from any of the Susanoo.

"You are not fighting to kill. Why?" Tia asked. It was strange, because her voice was calm and collected, but loud enough for me to hear.

I replied. "Because I want you to become my allies. Or at least turn away from Aizen. I don't want you dead."

Starrk was the one to ask the next question. "Why? We're Arrancar.."

Strange... Starrk was not acting lazy or laid-back. "Since when has difference of species made me look away from potential friends? The Noveno, Septima, Quinto and Segunda Espada weren't the type to be able to become friends, especially not with someone stronger than them. They were more the type to want some kind of relationship of convenience and then stab them in the back once the benefits stop. You two are reasonable people, and I don't want either of you to die, least of all by my hand."

They both frowned, with Starrk voicing his thoughts. "What's with the sudden interest in befriending us?"

I smiled at Starrk's question. "Because you're my favourites."

They both seemed to blink in unison. Yeah, someone just up and saying that they were the favourites wasn't exactly something to be expected.

"Favourites? What?"

They were both clearly confused, so I moved to rectify their lack of understanding. "Yes, favourites. Now, mind you, it has escalated from 'favourite' to 'wanting to become friends with' due to... various circumstances, so keep that in mind, please. Has Aizen told you anything about my explanation of the multiverse?"

They were both quiet for a few moments until Tia replied. "Somewhat. He said something about you coming from a different, chaotic dimension, hence why you should be destroyed as quickly as possible."

I sighed. "Something tells me I shouldn't be surprised. I have come from a different Realm of existence, true, but it wasn't chaotic in the sense that there is always global war or anything like that. Quite the opposite, in fact. There was law and order everywhere. But seeing as its presence is felt everywhere, the people become restless, making rash decisions based upon a small amount of knowledge. In other words, chaotic. But no war, no major, society changing conflicts between governments and their respective military. Let's call the Realm in which I was physically born the 'Main Realm'. I died in that Realm and was transported to another one. Let us call that one the 'First Realm'. I was there for maybe two years. I changed the way it would take, making it find its peace through conflict by helping someone who would be an unprecedented influence to its future. There, I died yet again, and landed here, in this Realm. This one I call the 'Second Realm'."

I continued, unperturbed by the silence. "In the Main Realm, where I come from, both the First Realm and the Second Realm are fictional stories. Where I come from, you are all simply the products of a person's imagination. That's why I know so much about you. That's why I know your past and present, as well as your possible future, had I not intervened. To me, when I was in the Main Realm, you didn't exist. You were made up characters that I liked."

I willed my Susanoo its arms out and felt my clones willing theirs to do the same in an eerie sort of synchronization that I honestly was not responsible for. "And yet, here you are. Breathing, thinking, feeling, touching, smelling, seeing, tasting, hearing, _living_. So you're obviously not just the product of someone's imagination. Not anymore, anyway."

Starrk shook his head, but he didn't open his mouth. Instead, another, girly voice spoke up. Or shouted, whichever. "What the hell are you spouting off, you dumb chakra monster?! I get the dimension stuff, but us being made up by some random guy? Fuck no! Starrk, fuck his shit up, now! You too, Harribel-sama!"

I stood, slightly stunned. How in the whole wide world could I have forgotten _her_? Lilynette Gingerbuck? She might have been in pistol form, but she could still speak.

"Lilynette Gingerbuck. You have been awfully quiet until now," I said, rising an eyebrow. But I shook my head and willed my Susanoo to do the same, despite that one little bit of a shock. "I see that I cannot convince you to leave Aizen's side at the moment. Perhaps exhausting you, or capturing you, will make me be able to talk to you and make you understand without you trying to kill me in the process."

I shifted my Susanoo to a more appropriate fighting stance, and felt and saw from the corner of my eye that the others did the same. Tia and Starrk also readied themselves.

There was a pause. Then my clones and I burst forward, meeting the Espada, who had also charged, midway. I don't remember much of what happened at the beginning. There were so many blurs. Zipping back and forth, defying gravity and surpassing wind, we clashed again, and again, and again. Swords clashed and sparked, blue beams lit the sky, water tumbled about, great gouts that struck with fury befitting the forces of nature. The very air around us began to roar with the force of our strikes, the vigour of our dashes, the maelstrom of a collision between three beings whose power dwarfed mortal comprehension.

Tia was a very worthy opponent. While her Cero and Bala were next to useless, her water based attacks chipped and tore off many pieces of the many Susanoo, sometimes managing to even cut through half an arm. Her high pressure water beams were extremely quick, to the point where my clones and I almost couldn't even see it coming. Her low pressure waves acted as blunt attacks, forcing me and my clones back quite a bit of distance, everything considered. Her shark tooth sword was deceptively sharp, sharper than even her high pressure attacks, and combined with her strength, it could tear through much of the defensive layers of my Susanoo, but never quite reaching me or my clones.

Starrk was an even more formidable fighter. Just like Tia's, his Cero and Bala were wasted energy that could be used for other attacks. That was counting the guns' abilities to rapid fire Cero. But Starrk's Colmillo swords were something I quickly took note of. They were sharp enough to almost ignore the protective layers around me and my clones when combined with his upper body strength and speed. It was amazing, really. They were sharper than even Tia's sword. And that was saying something.

My Susanoo were taking damage left and right, and had I not been constantly pouring more and more chakra into them – something I had in spades – they would have collapsed long ago. The constant stream of chakra was making sure that my Susanoo regenerated any damage done to them.

I was fast, even with the Susanoo, but Tia and Starrk were _so_ much faster. Their mastery over Sonido assured their dominance in the speed department. But I could outlast them, and I had a lot more energy to go. None of my attacks connected, although there were several close calls. It was slightly frustrating. Slightly, because they _were_ two of the strongest Espada, capable of being quite a challenge individually even for the Captain Commander.

Finally, after a good three minutes of intense fighting, a clone's Susanoo managed to connect with a fist, sending Starrk careening to another tall building, ripping it apart and scattering dust and debris even as his flight continued between several other buildings behind it, each collapsing with a roar one at a time.

The sudden change in battle order startled Tia giving enough time for another Susanoo to entrap her in its hands, imprisoning her.

The entire chakra that the Susanoo consisted of slowly drew into the shell trapping Tia, making the sphere larger and denser, but not causing Tia any discomfort if she weren't in there for an extended period of time. And I didn't plan on her being in that round ball of silver chakra for long.

I switched places with the clone that originally controlled the Susanoo that now was the ball surrounding Tia. With a mental order I sent the clones at Starrk to see what his state was, and if incapacitated, restrain him.

Defiant to the end, I could hear her striking at the walls of the sphere again and again, dozens of times. Her breathing was slowly becoming more audible as her panic grew. Not fear for her life, but fear at being unable to fight back. Oh, there was the familiar sound of a Cero, coupled with Tia's panicked exclamation of the technique's title. I really hoped the confined space didn't cause the blast to injure her. I flattened a hand on the sphere of chakra and thinned it, dispelling the chakra but hardening what was already there. I didn't want to give Tia a chance to injure me, after all.

Tia's eyes snapped at mine, and the instant she recognized me, her hand came up, and a yellow energy spat from it in a Cero. It smashed against the side of the sphere, and spread out, but failed to break through. It didn't help her mood that the chakra that got destroyed simply came back. I did take a mental note that the Cero was noticeably stronger than before.

Nonetheless, I had successfully trapped her.

I closed my eyes and sighed slightly. "Do you want me to prove to you that I really don't want to kill you? Or that I really don't mean you any harm? Or that I will not hurt anyone close to you? Anyone you hold dear? I can prove that to you. I can promise you that I will not be doing anything that would make you hate me or despise me, as opposed to most other Shinigami."

I paused, opened my eyes and looked straight into Tia's own angry ones. "I can easily promise you that no one will hurt even your friends, your Fracción, while I have anything to say about it. They will only do so over my dead body, and even then I'll do whatever I can to save both you and anyone you deem precious enough to let live."

With that I simply disappeared in a very slight flicker of light.

* * *

><p>I joined up with the rest of my clones, now eleven in number. One of them had dispelled to inform me of Starrk's condition.<p>

He was conscious. That was good. That last strike had really done a lot of damage to him. He had been properly restrained with a few hastily made seals that heightened the effects of both gravity and the weight Starrk had, along with some basic restraining techniques.

I knelt beside Starrk's slightly bleeding form. From a brief look I could deduce that he had suffered a lot of internal damage. My clones had fixed that as much as they could with the chakra they had left.

I waved off the rest of them, and a slight headache hit me. I had gotten somewhat used to the dispelling of shadow clones, but I still felt the repercussions of having too many clones over a fair time period where a lot has happened.

Seeing as I still had a lot of chakra left, I proceeded to heal the remaining few lacerations and bruises on his body, my hand veiled with a green glow with a slight tint of silver in it.

Ten seconds later and I was done healing any wounds I could see. The seals on Starrk's body made sure that he would remain immobile for a while. They weren't self-sustaining – those kinds of seals took chakra from its surroundings to sustain itself, and the surroundings I was in didn't have any natural chakra to begin with – and could only last for so long. But hopefully long enough.

I squatted by Starrk. "I will explain why you should turn away from Aizen, and alternatively join me."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I'm stupid and lazy. I'm so sorry I haven't updated for so long! Gah! And no, school is not an issue! If anything, it helps. But then why the hell am I so goddamn _late_?! I know the answer. Lack of inspiration and motivation. That is all. It is my fault, I take all the blame.  
>I'M SO GODDAMN SORRY! Dx<p> 


	67. A Helping Hand, Please!

**Author's note:** So... life is good, I guess. If you're reading this then it is very likely that I'm already moved to another country, that country being Denmark. I've most likely already established myself in the dormitory that I now live in.

But you shouldn't be too concerned about that. What you should be concerned about is that with school starting again for me, you should expect a little less activity from me. I'm telling you just in case, you understand.

* * *

><p>I had made his body both gain weight – not visually, of course. Just made his body much heavier – and made Starrk experience gravity to a much higher degree.<p>

"Explain why I should turn away from Lord Aizen? I won't do that, no matter what you will say," Starrk said in a lazy manner, although he wasn't actually lazy or laid-back.

I nodded, still determined to have him abandon Aizen. "Yes. You see, Aizen never did tell you that you should trust him. He never did plan on helping you at all. He always had his own agenda in mind, never your desires-"

Starrk's pistols shook. "That's some load of bull! Shut up, chakra monster, and just go and die already!"

I closed my eyes and sighed. Oh Lilynette. Always so rude. "First of all, it's not 'chakra monster', it's 'shinobi'. Second, it's not a 'load of bull', as you so eloquently said. I won't be able to tell you that it's the truth without evidence, I know that much. I'm truly at a loss of what I should do to make you drop your loyalty to Aizen-"

Suddenly my visage changed into an insane figure, a face splitting grin on my lips. My eyes were malevolent beyond anything Starrk had previously seen before. My entire body just screamed 'murderer'.

Starrk was honestly surprised. I had first appeared as a somewhat benevolent and kind person, wanting the best to happen to everyone who hadn't deserved the worst. Now, though, it seemed as if I was a serial killer who killed for nothing but sport.

"So I think I'm going to kill you! You're simply not worth the trouble!" I said, cackling maniacally.

Emilou Apacci leaped at me out of nowhere, her spiked chakram like weapons ready to maim and kill. "Die, chakra monster!" she shouted valiantly.

Tia was behind her, frowning. She was still in her Resurrección state, but even in it she couldn't catch up to Apacci with the distance between them.

I had turned just in time to block both of Apacci's weapons with my single sword. I grinned a bit wider, and proceeded to kick her stomach so hard that my foot went _through_ it. The concrete roof was stained with crimson life fluid.

Tia was shocked. I had sworn to her that I wouldn't harm her Fracción while I had any say in it, but what I had just done...

It proved to her that I was a chakra _monster_.

Barely restrained rage filled Tia, and she rushed at me with her sword, intent on killing me as quickly as possible.

I jumped to the side to avoid being skewered by Tia's sword. Tia had cracked the concrete with her sword, but it was to no avail, because she hadn't hit me.

She practically flew at me, her sword pointing straight at my face. I weaved through it again.

The dance continued for quite a while, me dodging and whipping around, her stabbing, slashing and running at me. If I hadn't been prepared – as in 'in the mood' for battle – then I would definitely have been killed and stabbed through.

Tia was about to hit me again when out of nowhere Sung-Sun made a surprise assault on me, coming from behind. Her sai blade was just about to pierce my spine if I had not used a body replacement technique to substitute myself with a piece of concrete.

A silver flame erupted from behind Sung-Sun. The flame erupted into silver flaming orbs, and out came a spear with a sharp head. The spear shot out and penetrated Sung-Sun's chest, coming all the way through it. The spear continued on its path, dissipating only when it almost hit the ground floor.

The spear's appearance shocked Tia, and the sanguine gore spraying on her body served to further traumatize her.

Sung-Sun's eyes looked emptily into Tia's own, blaming her, accusing her, _hating_ her.

Sung-Sun's body hit the floor, and I was standing behind her corpse, laughing gleefully, a wide, maniacal grin on my lips.

Fury filled Tia. Her cold facade shattered and fell, anger visible to even the most emotionally stunted of people. Tia flew towards me with unprecedented speed. She was so fast that I almost got killed by her.

And I just laughed. "That is it, Tia Harribel? Is this all the power you have? You are pathetic indeed! So pathetic that I almost pity you! _Almost_!" I laughed.

"Shut up, chakra monster," Tia growled, and continued trying to hit me.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile Starrk was perturbed, as well as Lilynette. They were sure that I wasn't some crazy individual. I had shown absolutely <em>no<em> signs whatsoever of any kind of insanity or craziness. So why had I suddenly changed? Starrk was deceptively observant, and he was sure he had seen no such thing as a mental instability in me.

So what had changed?

Starrk noticed that I never fought back against Tia, only jumping away and deflecting her attacks, never taking the opportunity to kill or harm her.

Usually Starrk would have attributed that to sadism, but this was anything but usual. No, it wasn't that I was _just_ dodging Tia's attacks. It looked more like I was trying to placate her through body language.

Besides, Starrk had never seen such an abrupt change of personality before.

So what was it? Why had I changed so suddenly?

Starrk tried to think of something that could cause such a thing, and barely two seconds later he discovered both a possibility to why I had changed so quickly and that the restraints I had put on him weren't in effect at all.

He thought it was time to check if the option that he was suspecting was true.

I had dropped Apacci's body when Tia attacked me the first time, so Starrk approached her _apparently_ dead body. He leaned over her body and swiped a bit of her blood with his fingers, staining them.

Cautiously, Starrk held his bloodied hand in front of his face. "What are you doing, Starrk?" Lilynette asked, but was very shocked about both my change in personality and Apacci's death.

"Testing something."

* * *

><p>Tia had suddenly attacked me with such fury and hate that I had been so surprised that if I hadn't had an instinctive reaction to sharp and pointy things rushing at my face I was pretty sure that I would at the very least be decapitated.<p>

I had no clue why she attacked me, why she continued to spout off hateful comments at me, as if I had wronged her immensely. I took great care to not follow my instincts and strike back. I didn't want to make Tia even angrier than she was.

"Why are you so suddenly angry, Tia Harribel? What's wrong?" I vainly tried to placate her.

"You know what you did!" Tia growled angrily. Her eyes were definitely filled with unrestrained hatred unmatched by anyone's I had yet seen.

The conversation continued, me desperately trying to figure out the source of Tia's sudden hate and Tia madly dashed at me and tried to skewer me repeatedly, shooting down any hope that I had to find out about her anger and scorn. The furious talking – I was furiously trying to discover Tia's reasoning, she was furious trying to kill me – continued for a time that, if Tia wasn't enraged and I wasn't trying to befriend her, would have otherwise considered a long time for a battle to take.

* * *

><p>Mila Rose jumped at me out of nowhere, throwing their respective attacks at me with great ferocity.<p>

It was for naught, however.

As Mila Rose got close I stabbed her in the stomach _with my own hand_, penetrating all the way through, splattering the ground with dark red blood and pieces of flesh and other important body parts.

Tia just stood there, not able to even move one bit. She didn't attribute that to being forced to stand still. She blamed her inaction on fear. Fear for her loved ones, her Fracción, her _friends_. And seeing me decimate them was eating away at her already destabilized heart.

All the while I laughed with unnerving glee.

Tia felt something warm travel downwards on her cheeks. She didn't need to feel it to confirm that they were tears.

Tia Harribel, Tercera Espada of Lord Aizen's Arrancar army, Vasto Lorde level Arrancar, was crying.

Tia's fury sky-rocketed. Her anger multiplied by an enormous amount that she didn't even know it was possible for her to be so angry, for _anyone_ to be so angry. She knew that she would enter a frenzy not even comparable to that of the wrath of the most menacing Hollows to exist, and that she would never come out of that state without my death.

She didn't care. She wanted to avenge her fallen friends. They were dead. She would not want their sacrifice be useless. She would kill their murderer, if it would kill her or not.

With a scream she cut herself with her shark sword and began to draw upon as much power as she could into it, blackening the compressed spiritual energy, letting only a tiny amount of the energy escape. The escaped energy took a yellow hue.

"Gran Rey Cero Oscuras!" she shouted, anger and hate-filled intent flooding her attack.

The resulting explosion was immense. No, not immense. _Colossal_. The stream of energy was so ridiculously _vast_ that it almost shattered the barrier that was over a kilometre away, so absurdly gigantic that it even brushed against the very top of the barrier. The black, yellow tinged Cero eviscerated any and all obstructions with the exception of the tough barrier. The Gran Rey Cero Oscuras would have hit many of the Gotei thirteen's forces, had they not sensed the unbelievable build up of power and quickly escaped the ensuing destructive Cero. And the Hollows, as primitive and primal as they were, sensed the danger and escaped the wrath of the Tercera Espada.

The aftermath of the overpowered Cero was virtually nothing. The buildings on the edge of the Cero collapsed down onto themselves, and those were just the ones that hadn't been blown away by the incredible wind the Cero generated.

Tia was exhausted after that utterly destructive technique. Her spiritual energy was so low that she was sure that she could even be defeated by a Menos Grande. That would have been humiliating.

Suddenly Tia felt heavy. Heavier than she had ever felt before. She blamed it on just feeling so exhausted, so she thought nothing of it.

Tia had had enough. She had enacted her revenge. She had no more reason to fight anymore. Her friends were dead. She had no one else to sacrifice for. No one else to help. She had nothing. I had taken everything that mattered to her away from her.

Tia fell on her knees and openly wept. She cried her heart out, punching the ground again and again, not letting up but not powering the punches with any of her remaining energy.

Her forehead slammed onto the concrete floor so hard that it tore her skin apart and she started bleeding heavily. She thought nothing of it.

Her tears mixed with her blood.

And I thought it oddly symbolic.

I was standing behind her, not moving, not talking. I was barely breathing, actually. I didn't know why she was crying. She had just used so much energy that I didn't even think it was possible. I never knew about a Cero related technique called 'Gran Rey Cero Oscuras'.

But frankly, I just wanted to know why Tia was despairing so much.

I didn't want her to cry. For all intents and purposes, it broke my heart.

I didn't want her to cry. So I did something that in hindsight was a stupid decision.

I applied heaviness seals on her body to restrain her from moving too quickly.

I administered further restraints on her, some disabling nerve signals going from the brain to the limbs.

Once the seals were finished I walked into her line of sight, my back to the devastation of her previous Cero. I knelt in front of her, but she didn't see me or hear me. Her eyes were closed and her ears were filled with her pain filled sobs of sorrow.

Slowly, carefully, I placed my hands on her shoulders.

* * *

><p>With a start Tia looked up and stopped when she looked into my laughing grin. "Well well well, what do we have here? A <em>crying<em> Tia Harribel? What kind of miserable little thing are you, crying your eyes out?"

* * *

><p>Tia's tears dried up with the sudden kick-up of wind and her wrath returned with full force. Spiritual pressure exploded out of her, and despite the fact that I felt none of it, I definitely saw the effects of it. My clothes fluttered with the wind, my hair whipping back and forth wildly, and the roof cracked slightly.<p>

I had a feeling that she could have done _so_ much more if she had not done that Cero.

"_You_," she snarled. "Why don't you just go and _die_ already?!" she yelled and attempted to hoist her sword up. But she felt too heavy to lift it. In fact, she felt too heavy overall. As if something was weighing her down, or that she herself was too heavy.

"Relax, Tia Harribel. I'm not here to hurt you. I don't know what I did, but whatever it is, I'm deeply sorry. I don't even know if I can make it up to you, since I don't know what I did, but I will try my hardest to do so," I futilely tried to pacify the enraged woman.

I didn't expect her to be able to summon the strength to stand up and swing her heavy looking sword.

I didn't move. Not because I was startled or anything like that, but rather because I didn't want to get further into her bad side.

She was standing shakily and her sword shook with equal ferocity. Her sword was pointing at me, but I just stood still, not moving.

Tia did not hesitate once her shaking subsided to a manageable level and took a step forward, trying to force her arm to stab me with the sword in her hand.

The sword rushed forward at my chest, piercing the air with almost no resistance at all.

But just before the sword could touch me a hand held tightly on Tia's wrist, stopping the forward motion of the sword.

The hand belonged to a certain brown haired individual going by the name of Coyote Starrk.

"Stop, Harribel," he murmured. He was uncharacteristically serious, not a trace of his usual laziness could be found on his expression.

Tia's hand was shaking some more, and her gaze did not break away from her target; me. "What are you doing, Primera?" she growled angrily. "The chakra monster just killed my Fracción!"

Starrk's frown deepened. "I don't think that's true."

Starrk turned to me. "Why do you want us to join you?" he asked.

* * *

><p>"Because I wanted to surprise you and stab you in the back, of course! It's more fun that way!"<p>

* * *

><p>"Because I don't want you to die, of course. You're too good people to die."<p>

* * *

><p>"See what I mean? He's insane, but he didn't show a single trace of that during our fight not that long ago," Starrk theorized.<p>

Tia's hand that was held by Starrk was beginning to shake even more. "Are you saying..."

Starrk nodded.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. _Lord_ Aizen is actually doing something to make us not listen to him."

Just as Starrk said those words a glint of silver appeared in the air, but it was solid, unlike my silver chakra.

It was a thin sword.

It slashed, and blood flew.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> I'm definitely inefficient with updating rate. I am sorry about that. I really am. I have no excuse except for lack of inspiration and laziness. I am truly sorry about the extreme lateness...

On an unrelated note, if you haven't seen it already (which I don't think most of you have. xD) I have published another story, one that has nothing to do with the one I currently have, except for the fact that it is focused on the Naruto universe. But as opposed to this story, my new story is _only_ focusing on the Naruto universe.

Again, I'm _really_ sorry about the lateness of the update. But seeing as I'm in school again, I might be able to update more frequently. Emphasis on _might_.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, me being back in school and updating more frequently, does it? But hear me out. If I have _less_ time writing the _more_ I _want_ to write. You always want what you don't have, right? This just happens to mean "I don't have a lot of time writing, therefore I write more in longer periods of time". It sort of looks like a paradox from that angle, now that I think about it...

Bah! You don't care about the "_why_"! You care about the fact that there will be more updates more often! Hopefully once every two weeks. Maybe even once a week! We'll see indeed!


	68. Notice, please don't report!

*sigh* I don't know anymore. I don't know if I should write anymore. I'm so depressed and filled with angst! *cries with immense angst*

No, but seriously, I don't know if I should continue. I've sort of lost inspiration and motivation to write now. My main story is stagnant in continuation, my third story hasn't been updated for god knows how long (30/8/11... dear lord, that's, what, over a year ago?!), and now this story. I'm starting to lose my funk, dude. Dunno what funk is, but you get the general idea. I'm running out of juice, I'm running on fumes alone. And I don't want to run on fumes... hell, I don't want to run at all. xD

Jokes aside, I don't think that I can write fan fiction for quite some time. I know, it sounds as if I'm leaving you all hanging forever and ever. But I won't! At least I don't hope I will. It's just that I don't know if I can write, at least not for an extended period of time. That is very much a bad thing, yes. I know how frustrating it can be when the author that writes a story you like hasn't updated for months (I'm looking at you, Kenchi618! Who, BTW, is a brilliant author), I know that, and I don't wish it upon any of you.

But it's just that I can't go on like this. I need somethin' man! Something good. And with the recent Uchiha centred chapters in the manga, I seriously lost loads of creativity.

Let it be known that I dislike the Uchiha, the self-entitled ponces that they are. They always think that they are right, that the methods they're using are the right ones.

To make matters even worse, Obito is one whiny _bitch_! Yes, you were friendzoned by your crush, yes, your crush died by your best friend's (sort of, anyway) hands, but none of that would have happened, had your balls dropped and confessed to Rin! Jesus christ on a hamstick, dude, what the flying fuck?! Obito is the reason for everything, the Uchiha idiot! Apparently, Obito isn't strong enough to 'overcome' the Uchiha 'curse of hatred'. "Curse of hatred" my ass, all they want is power. It's more like a "curse of jealousy"!

Fucking Uchiha...

Anyway, I think I will put my stories on hold (I dislike the word "hiatus". Wa~y too overused, in my honest opinion).

Instead, I have a suggestion for y'all. Instead of reviewing and criticising my stories, give me stories to write.

Yes, that's right. I'm accepting challenges from you!

But I do reserve the right (pssh, that sounds as if I'm way too important. Sorry 'bout that) to deny the requests, or whatever. What I mean by that is that if the challenge isn't what I would like in a story, then consider it denied.

The ideas that I can think of immediately that I will deny automatically are listed below:

Yaoi. No. Just no.

Stories that portray the Uchiha in an immediate positive light. What I mean by that is that from the story's start, the Uchiha are the good guys.

High school stories. Explanation need not apply.

Incest stories. No. Just no.

Kushina/anyone-other-than-Minato. No, I will not separate them. Ever.

Kurenai/anyone-other-than-Asuma. They're already a couple. I don't want them separated.

Stories that are not focusing on Naruto as a main character.

Bashing of Hinata. Seriously? What? Hinata shouldn't be bashed whatsoever! D:

Harem stories. I don't like romantic harem stories. A ménage a trois is acceptable, but if there are three ladies and above, I step off the stage. If it's a lemon challenge, however...

Oh, and no, these don't apply to just Naruto challenges.

I also accept requests from these universes:

Angel Beats!

Assassin's Creed

Bastion

Binding of Isaac (… yes, it's awesomely fucked up!)

Black Lagoon

Black Rock Shooter (OVA, not anime)

Bleach

Blue Exorcist (anime, not manga)

Brutal Legend

Borderlands (have only played the first one, my computer can't play the second one. Yes, it's that crappy)

Claymore

Dark Souls

Dead Space 1 and 2, don't plan on playing 3.

Deadman Wonderland (the anime)

Deus Ex: Human Revolution, as well as The Missing Link. Haven't played the other two.

Dragon Age

The Elder Scrolls Oblivion and Skyrim

Elfen Lied

Fairy Tail

Fallout 3/New Vegas

Final Fantasy 7

Final Fantasy 13

Final Fantasy 13-2

Gantz

God Hand (high-larious! Emphasis on "high". xD)

Harry Potter

Hellsing

inFAMOUS

Infinite Stratos (the anime)

It's Not My Fault I'm Not Popular (this... is... so... awkward... I'd still bang her. xD)

Left 4 Dead

Mass Effect

Mirror's Edge

Neon Genesis Evangelion (the movies only. The TV series is a goddamn mess of a clusterfuck)

Okami (the first game, played the PS2 version)

One Piece

Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt (this is some fucking awe-)

Portal 1/2

Prototype (the first one, haven't played the second one)

Queen's Blade (fuck yeah, boobs! 8D)

Saints Row 2 and 3

Shadow of the Colossus (it's up there with Okami in quality, man! :D)

Soul Eater (the anime only)

To The Moon (most emotional game I have played yet!)  
>Warcraft (have played very little of WoW, played mainly Warcraft 3)<p>

Warhammer 40,000

WET (the game)

And that's about it, I think.

Also, yes, I do crossovers. Multi-x-overs, maybe. Take that with a metric ton of salt. But don't eat that salt, it won't be healthy for you!


	69. Given Up

I have lost complete and total interest in this story. Am I sorry? Of course I am. Am I sorry enough to pick it up again? No.

If anyone out there wishes to pick this story up, i.e. adopt it, send me a message and I'll send you the necessary files to continue.


End file.
